BJP President Rajnath Singh on Friday held the Congress responsible for the plight of Dalits in the country. His statement comes in the backdrop of his predecessor Bangaru Laxman coming out openly on the issue of neglect of Dalit leaders in the party.

“It is the Congress which is responsible for the darkness faced by Dalits. And who else?” Singh said in a statement.

Singh, who addressed the party’s Scheduled Castes cell at a meeting, also alleged that the Manmohan Singh Government had stalled SC welfare schemes. Singh also assured Dalit leaders in the party that he would keep “them a step ahead in every institution of the party”.

Meanwhile, the core committee of the BJP in a meeting took stock of the political situation in the country and concluded that the UPA-Left alliance would break soon. Party leaders felt it was time it fine-tuned election strategies, particularly on bringing together a viable alliance. The NDA, led by the BJP, is in a state of disarray and the party would approach prospective allies and strengthen the existing ones.