Rahul Gandhi should explain Muslim party remark: Nirmala Sitharaman

"Rahul Gandhi has to come out to say very clearly that what did he mean when he said Congress is Muslim party. Does he stand by his leader [Karnataka Congress leader B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan] for calling Sharia court all over the country?," Sitharaman said while addressing a press conference here.

She said the Congress will be responsible if any disharmony occurs in the country between now and 2019 elections.

She said: "Congress playing a dangerous game. It is playing up the card of religion and communal division. It is that it may lead to the kind of division and kind of communal disharmony which prevailed during 1947 partition."

"Congress party shall be solely responsible if any disharmony plays out between now and 2019 elections," the Minister said.

According to reports, Urdu newspaper 'Inqalab' had quoted Rahul Gandhi as saying that the Congress was a “Muslim party”.

Gandhi was reported to have made the Muslim remark during a recent meeting with Muslim intellectuals on July 11.

Prominent editor Shahid Siddiqui earlier tweeted: "Urdu daily Inqalab has quoted Rahul Gandhi saying 'Yes Congress is a Muslim party'. Is the quote correct or party will contradict it? Muslims don’t want a Muslim party, they want a National Secular party, which doesn’t discriminate between citizens. @RahulGandhi @INCIndia."