Bengaluru: Ahead of Gandhi Jayanti, Telangana state BJP, on Tuesday (October 1) released an official communique, addressed by the party's chief spokesperson, Krishna Saagar Rao, which said that Congress party should stop claiming Mahatma Gandhi and his legacy as their own.

The communique further stated that it would only lower the grand stature of this great national leader. 

"Gandhi is a national leader who fought for India's freedom by uniting millions of people in his decade-long endeavour. He was never a political leader, never held a political position, nor did he ever lead a political party. However, he led a mammoth freedom movement until India achieved freedom from the British," the statement reads.

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The press release further reads, "Pre-independent Congress was purely a platform for freedom fighters, people from all ideologies worked in the party. It's also not a secret that Mahatma Gandhi wanted the Congress party to shut down after Independence, as the platform had served its purpose." 

Reacting to this, Karnataka Congress spokesperson, Kengal Shreepada Renu, spoke to MyNation and questioned BJP's claims.

"BJP did not have a history back then. They did not have their own identity back then. Where was BJP when India fought for Independence? Where were they (BJP) when Mahatma Gandhi fought for our nation?" Congress leader questioned.

"Why shouldn't we use Mahatma Gandhi's name? In fact, it was an RSS man who shot him," Kengal Renu added.

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The political tiff between the two parties has surfaced while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to celebrate Gandhi Jayanti as a grand occasion by calling for new initiatives to provide better life for future generations.

PM Modi will declare India as an Open Defecation Free (ODF) country on October 2 and introduce ban on single-use plastic to fight climate change.

The Centre has also called for a "Fit India Plogging Run", where the people involved in the event would pick up trash from the streets while they are jogging.