Siddaramaiah Won't Make Such Comment Sans Intel Input: Cong on 'Hindutva Extremists' Remark

New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday appeared to be defending Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah after he called the BJP and the RSS as "Hindutva extremists" triggering a war of words, and said he would not have made such a statement without "intelligence" inputs.

"He (Siddaramaiah) is the chief minister of a state...It is possible that the chief minister has inputs which we don't have. In this situation, you will have to pose this question to the chief minister and seek clarification. Because he won't speak anything of this kind if he has no intelligence input," Congress spokesperson Tom Vadakkan told reporters in New Delhi.

He also hit back at BJP president Amit Shah for his remarks that the Karnataka government was "anti-Hindu".

Addressing a rally in Karnataka on Wednesday, Shah charged the state government with perpetrating atrocities against BJP and RSS workers, claiming 20 of them were killed in the state over the last three years.

Siddaramaiah, while speaking to reporters on Wednesdy in Chamarajanagara district, alleged that the BJP, RSS and the Bajrang Dal had terrorists in their organisations, a charge rubbished by the saffron party.

It was not clear whether the chief minister made the comment in retaliation to Shah's remark.

Siddaramaiah, who came under intense attack from the BJP on Wednesday for saying that the party and its fountainhead RSS had "terrorists", today called them "Hindutva extremists".

Speaking to reporters today, Siddaramaiah said, "I had said they are Hindutva terrorists. I am also a Hindu, but I'm a Hindu with humanity, they are Hindus without humanity. That is the difference between me and... (them)."

Referring to Shah's jibe, Vadakkan also said the BJP chief made the comment with the sole intention of winning the upcoming assembly election in Karnataka.

Hitting out at Shah, Vadakkan said it was "strange" that Shah called the state government as "anti-Hindu".

"Shah's intention is to win. How he does that is his angle. It is strange to say that anti-Hindu. Only Amit Shah ji can do this," he said, adding only people of the state can decide whose government will be formed (in the state).

The BJP also dared Siddaramaiah to arrest its as well as RSS leaders.