New Delhi, Nov 11 (IANS) The BJP on Tuesday demanded an explanation from the Congress on the whereabouts of its leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on the day of the deadly terror blast near Red Fort.

Amit Malviya, in charge of the BJP’s National Information and Technology Department, said, “The Congress must issue a formal statement on the whereabouts of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra on the day of the Delhi blast — and in the hours that followed.”

“The nation deserves to know where the two key decision-makers of the Congress were when India was under attack,” he said, raising doubt about whether the two leaders were physically present in the city or the country to share the grief of the victims.

Malviya’s criticism of Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi came within hours of the latter expressing his sorrow over the incident on social media.

Taking to X on Monday, LoP Rahul Gandhi said, “The news of the car explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort Metro Station is extremely heartbreaking and concerning. The report of the deaths of several innocent people in this tragic incident is profoundly sorrowful.”

“In this hour of grief, I stand with the bereaved families who have lost their loved ones and express my deepest condolences to them. I hope for the swift recovery of all the injured,” said LoP Rahul Gandhi.

Similarly, Congress MP from Wayanad, Priyanka Gandhi, also termed the incident “heartbreaking” and said, “May God grant peace to the departed souls. My deepest condolences to the bereaved families. I pray for the swift recovery of those injured.”

The political duel between the BJP and the Congress aggravated on Tuesday with Malviya hitting out at the “shameless” Congress for “working against national interest”, deprecating the Opposition parties’ bid to “politicise” the tragedy in which eight people were killed.

“If being shameless and working against national interest had a face, it would look exactly like the Congress,” said a BJP leader.

“The problem with our Opposition and the loony far-Left ecosystem is that they simply do not know how to stand with the country in times of need,” said Malviya, in charge of the BJP’s National Information and Technology Department, on X

The Congress hit back and blamed the authorities for failure to check the transportation of such large quantities of explosives in the NCR region.

Congress National Spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said, “It’s very concerning that 13 Indians have been killed in the National Capital, Delhi. The problematic thing is that about 2,600 kilos of explosives were caught in Faridabad. Seven months ago, a terrorist attack took place in Pahalgam. I think this is a matter of concern. How is this happening?”

–IANS

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