BJP to protest outside PM's residence over Shinde

New Delhi: The BJP will protest outside the Prime Minister's House Feb 20 to demand an apology from Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde for his "saffron terror" and "Hindu terror" remarks, a party leader said on Friday.

The protest will be held a day before the start of the budget session of Parliament.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said Shinde should seek a public apology for his remarks and added that if Shinde did not apologise, the party would strongly protest against him.

Naqvi accused Shinde of displaying "criminal mentality" by floating a balloon of "Hindu terrorism" and "giving clean chit to real terrorism".

He said the way Shinde sought to link terrorist incidents with "saffron terrorism" had helped real terrorists cover their flanks.

"Pakistan, which has been exposed in the eyes of the world on the issue of terrorism, has started using Shinde's remarks as a shield," Naqvi said.

He said the BJP would strongly protest the remarks February 20 and would "gherao" the Prime Minister's House.

The party has already decided to boycott public programmes of Shinde and not to respond to any communication from him as leader of house in the Lok Sabha.

At a Congress conclave in Jaipur last month, Shine said: "Whether it is BJP or RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh), their training camps are promoting Hindu terrorism".

However, he sought to retract the remarks on Wednesday and said he agreed with the Congress's view that terrorism has no colour.