Manish Tewari hits back at Bharatiya Janata Party

NEW DELHI: Hitting back at the BJP for calling Congress a "sinking ship,"Information and Broadcasting minister Manish Tewari today said that many NDA allies had already left and the opposition party's ship has already sunk.

"I think the only ship which has already sunk is the ship of the Bharatiya Janata Party and that is indicative of how the NDA collapsed under the current dispensation of the BJP," he said.

He added that despite all attempts, the BJP has not been able to gather allies in the National Democratic Alliance.

"If at all you have seen anything, it has been the erosion of allies. The last one being the JMM which left them in Jharkhand as a result of which their government came tumbling down," he said.

Tewari said that before levelling wild charges the opposition party would be well served as to how many allies join them and how many have left them in the past five years.

Earlier, following reports suggesting unease between Congress and its ally NCP, BJP had said the party was a "sinking ship" which was being deserted by its passengers.

"Congress is a sinking ship and its passengers are deserting it. Sonia cannot deliver. Manmohan Singh is past. Rahul Gandhi is a failure. They know how Congress and UPA have made a mess of India. Allies are seeking greener pastures elsewhere," BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad had said.