Against the backdrop of the gruesome murder in Udaipur, the Congress has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi why he is refusing to address the spread of communal hatred in the country and what his silence means.

The Congress on Wednesday said the Ashok Gehlot government in Rajasthan had taken the quickest possible action by swiftly arresting the perpetrators of the Udaipur murder and calling an all-party meeting to restore normality.

Two men with a cleaver, identified as Riaz Akhtari and Ghouse Mohammad, murdered tailor Kanhaiya Lal and posted videos online that said they were avenging an insult to Islam. The duo indirectly alluded to Nupur Sharma, the BJP leader suspended from the party over derogatory remarks on Prophet Mohammed.

Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said: “The killers were arrested within six hours. A special investigation team was constituted and the case was put on the fast track. Nobody will be spared, even the policemen who (are) found guilty of dereliction of duty. The chief minister has said the police will cooperate with the National Investigation Agency (which has taken over the probe). The Gehlot government is bound by rajdharma.”

Underlining that communal violence had acquired a dreadful dimension, Khera said: “Ashok Gehlot has been publicly pleading with the Prime Minister and the home minister to deal with communal violence spreading across the country. The dangerous situation has evolved over the past few years; such volatile circumstances were never seen in the past. Gehlot asked the Prime Minister to address the nation and send out a firm message that communal violence and toxic rhetoric would not be tolerated.”

The Congress spokesperson added: “The Prime Minister travels across the country and speaks on every subject. What is the meaning of his silence on this issue? Atal Bihari Vajpayee tried his best to make Modi understand the meaning of rajdharma (after the 2002 Gujarat riots). He didn’t understand. Now he is the Prime Minister. It is his duty to deal with this problem and take steps to maintain peace.”Khera contested the allegations of appeasement, saying:

“The Rajasthan government will take strictest action, which will be seen as an example throughout the country. The law will be enforced without any consideration of caste, religion, politics…. In the same Rajasthan in 2017, somebody uploaded a video of a murder, and supporters of one political party came out in his support, climbed atop the court and hoisted their flag, removing the Tricolour.”

Khera added: “Inspector Subodh Kumar Singh was doing his duty when he was killed (by cow vandals at Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh in 2018). His killers were hailed, garlanded and given protection by BJP workers. What action has been taken in the case of (Pandit) Rahul Bhat in Kashmir so far? Who went to wrap the Tricolour around the body of (lynching victim Mohammad) Akhlaque’s killer? Union minister Mahesh Sharma. The BJP should not lecture us.”

Akhlaque was lynched by a mob in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, in 2015 on the suspicion of storing beef in his fridge. His suspected killer died of dengue in prison and Union minister Sharma visited his village to honour him.

The Udaipur crime has been strongly condemned by political parties, civil society activists, clerics and academics.