The Bharatiya Janata Party today alleged that the Congress has forged the signatures of many of its legislators while submitting the party's list of MLAs to the governor claiming it had the numbers to form the government.

Addressing reporters in Bengaluru, Union Human Resources Minister Prakash Javadekar said one was at a loss to understand how Congress could collect the signatures of all the MLAs even before they arrived in Bengaluru and attended the Congress Legislature Party meeting.

He said forging signatures and other documents wasnot something new to the Congress.

When the polls in Manipur threw up a hung assembly, the Congress submitted a forged letter of support of the Manipur People's Party.

However, it was found that the grand old party had forged it, he said.

In Karnataka also,the Congress had resorted to theirage old practice, Javadekar said, adding the party hasbecome synonymous with the word forgery.

Defending Governor Vajubhai Vala's action in inviting BJP to form the government, Javadekar said he had onlyfollowed the rule book as there was no pre-poll alliance in Karnataka and Congress and Janata Dal-Secular were bitter foes before the poll, where the parties' leaders called each other names.

"During his election campaign in Karnataka, Congress President Rahul Gandhi had termed JDS as the 'B' team of BJP. Hehad said that JD(S) means nothing but Janata Dal Sangh Parivar. Now they are trying to cobble together analliance, which is nothing but a sheer opportunistic move," he said.

The governor did the right thing by inviting the single largest party toform the government and prove the majority on the floor of the House, he added.

Javadekar said it was sad that Congress has held its MLAs captive in 'isolated resorts', severing contacts with their families and not even being allowed to watch news channels.

Referring to Congress President Rahul Gandhi's remark at Raipur today that the judiciary hadbeen suppressed, Javadekar reminded him of the dark days ofthe Emergency in 1975.

"The grand old party had not only overturned the judicialsystem, but also suppressed the freedom of the press. Instead ofseeking pardon for their sins, the Congress leader is tryingto create a false perception," he said.

IMAGE: JD-S MLAs inside a bus as they leave after sitting on a dharna in front of Gandhi Statue near Vidhan Soudha to protest against Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala's invitation to BJP to form the government, in Bengaluru on Thursday. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI Photo