Congress Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh on Saturday accused the ruling BJP of creating fear of investigating agencies to force Opposition leaders to switch their loyalties.

Asked about his former Congress colleague Suresh Pachouri joining the Bharatiya Janata Party, he said such leaders can not stay away from power.

After switching sides, Pachouri said the Congress was turning away from the people.

Hitting back, Singh told reporters in Indore, "When was the last time he went among the public and when did he listen to the voice of the public? These are all excuses. The truth is that these people cannot stay away from power." Leaders of other parties are joining the BJP due to the fear of the Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax Department and CBI that the Union government is creating, the Congress veteran alleged.

He also appeared to express confidence about a resurgence of the Congress.

"Even in 1977, people used to say that Congress would be finished. After that, I and other Congress leaders contested elections and we won," he said, referring to the party's return to power in 1980 after the crushing defeat it suffered in the post-Emergency elections.

Grassroots workers of the party will never leave, Singh asserted.

Asked if he would contest the Lok Sabha elections, he said he will obey every order of the party, though the Congress has no dearth of candidates.

Attacking the ruling BJP over the fire that broke out in Madhya Pradesh's State Secretariat Vallabh Bhawan in the morning, Singh alleged that "evidence of corruption" was being destroyed. Reports of investigations into past incidents of fire never came out, he claimed.

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