The BJP on Monday accused the Congress of running a smear campaign against Union Home Minister Amit Shah and said, instead of indulging in such "drama", it should apologise for always "insulting and humiliating" BR Ambedkar.

It also accused the Congress of using out of context a small portion of Shah's recent speech in the Rajya Sabha in a bid to "establish its political identity".

The Congress has launched a weeklong nationwide campaign against Shah, alleging that he insulted Ambedkar with his remarks while participating in a debate on the Constitution in the Rajya Sabha last week.

As part of the "Ambedkar Samman Saptah", Congress workers and leaders will hold marches and press conferences to remember Ambedkar's legacy, the party said on Saturday.

Hitting back, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad alleged that the Congress, which "always" insulted Ambedkar during his lifetime, was doing a "drama" of remembering his legacy.

"The Congress, which always insulted BR Ambedkar, is holding press conferences across the country… Stop this drama. Stop this hypocrisy," Prasad said in a press conference at the party headquarters.

"The Congress must tender an unconditional apology for all the insults and humiliations done to BR Ambedkar during his lifetime and to his legacy after his death. First of all, publicly apologise and then hold press conferences," he added.

Prasad also said that the people of the country were very mature. "Its (Congress) efforts will not succeed."

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.