Dismissing Rahul Gandhi's denouncement of the ordinance on tainted MPs/MLAs as a "drama", the BJP on Friday said it is a desperate "damage control exercise" which has come "much belated" and asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to resign "if he has any self-respect left".

The BJP also accused Congress of doing "opportunistic" politics and said such a "drama" was enacted ahead of elections and made "a mockery" of democracy.

"Mr Rahul Gandhi is really not new to this sort of drama. If you recall what happened during the Uttar Pradesh elections, the manner in which the lists were torn, we see a sequel of the same series."
 

"The sequel of the same series comes on the eve of 2014 elections and in that sequel we must understand that the Congress party is trying to project an image which is worth watching and that is a mockery of democracy," said BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi.

She said, "If Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has any self respect left, then I think he should call it a day because the supercop who can correct the system has arrived on the scene."

Lekhi said the "credit seeking and grandstanding" by Gandhi comes in the wake of the likelihood of the President not giving his assent to the ordinance and sending it back to the government.

Lekhi said today's remarks by Gandhi was a bid to project him even at the cost of the Prime Minister or the government and give him credit for all the good things ever done.

"The government can be wrong, the cabinet can be wrong and everybody can be wrong but the dynastic family can do no wrong and that is the Congress mantra," she said, adding "all the wrong things lie on the head of the Prime Minister and all the right things go to Mrs Gandhi's share."

Lekhi charged today's action has once again shown that the ruling party is engaging itself in "opportunistic politics".

"The desperation to do the damage control is very apparent from the timing. The government run by Congress party first brought out the bill on tainted legislators and then an ordinance," she said, questioning the availability of Rahul Gandhi's leadership at that time.

"The nonsense was getting perpetuated twice, not once," she said and questioned where Gandhi was all this while.

"Rahul Gandhi's response is under a planned strategy by Congress party and it is an attempt to project Mr Rahul Gandhi in media on the issue of ordinance...Congress is like a hydra-headed party which speaks in multiple voices at the same time....It has once again shown that the party is engaging itself in opportunistic politics," she said.

Lekhi said the desperation to do the damage control is very apparent from the timing.

"It is a sad day to treat the post of the Prime Minister in a shoddy manner just before he is to meet the US President, but it's a big question whether Mr Prime Minister will resign from the office as his self respect has been diminished or continue the perpetuation of diarchal system."

"We all know that this was a face-saving exercise by Congress party but it need not have been at the cost of belittling the office of India's Prime Minister," Lekhi said.

Asked about the stand of BJP on the Supreme Court verdict on convicted lawmakers, she said "it is very clear that we have opposed both the subject matter and the methodology adopted by Congress party for bringing this ordinance".

She said the role of the legislature is to make amendments in the law and thus a necessity to participate in the standing committee should not be looked at in any other manner.