Tuesday, March 8 2005 18:11 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: : Stepping up its offensive against the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) ahead of the trial of strength in Jharkhand Assembly, BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) today (March 8, 2005) charged Congress President Sonia Gandhi with "duplicity and dishonesty" and posed several questions to the ruling alliance including on the role of the two Union Ministers who were camping in the State.

"If the Congress president really thought the Jharkhand Governor's action was wrong, why did not she take steps to right that wrong? Why did not she direct her party unit in the State to get Chief Minister Shibu Soren to resign and pave the way for the Governor to invite Arjun Munda to form the Government, especially after the latter had physically presented 41 MLAs supporting him before the President?

"Isn't this a clear case of the Congress president's duplicity and dishonesty", party Vice-President Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi asked in a statement in New Delhi.

He said if the Centre was not involved in Soren's "unconstitutional installation", how was it that Union Ministers Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi and Subodh Kant Sahay were present in Ranchi throughout the episode?

"Is it not true that they were guiding the Governor on the basis of the directions they received from Delhi? Could the Union Ministers have gone to Ranchi, especially when Parliament was in session in Delhi, and done what they did without the knowledge of the Prime Minister?" Naqvi asked.

He said "crude attempts" have been made to shield the Congress President and Prime Minister from gathering criticism in the wake of all round condemnation of the action of the Governors of Goa and Jharkhand.

"Will someone in the Congress stand up and answer these questions?" he asked.