After severe criticism from Tamil Nadu's major parties and protests in the state, the BJP hastily distanced itself from allegations that the party was behind Mahinda Rajapakse's planned visit to a Buddhist event in Madhya Pradesh, pushing the blame onto Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
"Invitation to Rajapajksa was sent by the prime minister, not by the leader of opposition. I have not invited him.
"Leader of opposition cannot invite anybody (head of the state) to the country. His itinerary has been finalised by the Premier and MEA," said BJP leader Sushma Swaraj.
BJP’s Tamil Nadu chief Pon Radhakrishnan also denied the reports, saying that the BJP was against the visit.
"There are wrong reports that Swaraj had invited him. To know the truth I spoke to her over phone and she categorically stated that she had not invited him," he said in a statement.
"The Centre is trying to shift the blame on BJP, despite our strong opposition to the visit of Rajapakse,"
"We oppose the visit of Rajapakse,"
Protests were held in Tamil Nadu against the proposed visit, with pictures of both Rajapakse and Swaraj burned by activists.
"This kind of an invitation is an insult for Tamil people. Sushma Swaraj is an enemy of Tamil people. The United Nations has declared Rajapaksa a war criminal. We request the government of India not to allow Rajapaksa to enter India," a protesting lawyer said.
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