Joining the other Sangh Parivar affiliates, Bajrang Dal on Monday attacked former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and former deputy prime minister Lal Kishenchand Advani, accusing them of distancing the party from 'Hindutva ideology' and asked them to 'take rest'.

Reacting sharply to Vajpayee's remark that Gujarat riots were responsible for BJP's debacle in Lok Sabha polls, Bajrang Dal National convenor Prakash Sharma said the BJP stalwarts should desist from 'humiliating Hindus and Hindutva'.

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"Distancing from pure Hindutva was the reason for BJP's debacle in the elections and not Gujarat riots. If the party leaders do not see their weakness and realise the actual cause of its defeat, it will face more problems," he told PTI here.

"The people had a choice between two Congress parties -- one pre-independence and another projecting itself as post-independence one. The people chose the original one," he said, accusing both Vajpayee and Advani of diluting Hindutva ideology.

Noting that BJP's poll plank of projecting Vajpayee had 'failed', Sharma said, "Personality and development without ideology does not help."

"Age is on the wrong side of Vajpayee and Advani and they should take rest now to allow young leaders to take charge," he said.

The Vishwa Hindu Parishad had also asked Vajpayee and Advani yesterday to take 'political sanyas' to repent for the electoral debacle.