Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma today alleged that Gujarat Police in plain clothes instigated the Muzaffarnagar riots and dubbed Narendra Modi and Mulayam Singh Yadav as Hitler and Mussolini.

Verma, who recently visited Poland, said both Modi and Mulayam were "hand in glove". The senior Congress leader said riots in Godhra were on the pattern of Nazi attack and Muzaffarnagar riots were the second of that type.

Asked for the basis of his allegations, he merely said even the then District Magistrate of Muzaffarnagar had stated that the way riots had occurred has the mark of outsiders.

He also said that the appointment of Amit Shah by BJP as general secretary in-charge of UP was clearly indicative that the party wanted to "promote criminal activities". This was because Shah is already facing charges in some fake encounter cases in Gujarat, he said.