Congress accuses BJP of foul play in Arunachal

The Congress on Friday accused PM Narendra Modi and the BJP of "foul play" and committing a "fraud on democracy" after Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu alongwith 42 Congress MLAs quit the party and joined Peoples Party of Arunachal (PPA).

"Modi's and BJP's (Bharatiya Janata Party) foul play and fraud on democracy has come to a full circle in Arunachal Pradesh today," Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala told reporters here.

"PPA is the illegitimate child of the BJP's diabolical design to decimate democracy," he alleged.

"Mandate of the people of the border state of Arunachal has been robbed in broad day light," Surjewala said.

The Congress leader's remarks came after Pema Khandu and 42 Congress MLAs defected to the PPA, an ally of the BJP in the state.

"The gross and rampant misuse of money power finally delivered an immoral government of opportunists and turncoats," Surjewala alleged.

He also said "Sadly the architects of extinguishing and murdering the very spirit of democracy and constitutionalism, are Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi and (BJP national president) Amit Shah who rode to power on the promise of cooperative federalism."

"Having been thwarted twice, BJP began by engineering defections, inducements, threats etc to subvert people's mandate," the Congress leader said, adding, "They sacrificed a former Chief Minister and Governor, who enjoyed their patronage."

"BJP government has annihilated the soul of constitutional supremacy," he added.

Surjewala also said that the "prodigal sons of Congress" who have jumped ship have made "massive ideological and political blunder and compromise".

"They have also destroyed trust of people of Arunachal Pradesh, who voted for them as candidates of Congress. Such politics, as we are seeing in Arunachal Pradesh, is neither tenable nor credible," the Congress leader added.