Naresh Gujral said what happened after the lynching incident in Uttar Pradesh "is damaging the NDA, the BJP and damaging the Prime Minister more than anybody else".
Speaking out for first time after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement on the mob-lynching of a man in Uttar Pradesh's Dadri allegedly over rumours that he had eaten beef, key BJP ally Shiromani Akali Dal has slammed the party for failing to act against "rotor-mouths".
"It's high time now that the BJP leadership takes action against at least one such person so that there is some kind of sanity back in national affairs," Naresh Gujral, Akali Dal leader, told NDTV.
Mr Gujral said the incident last month was "a shame for the nation". "It should be condemned in strongest possible terms," he said.
Reacting to the incident for the first time earlier this week,
Prime Minister Modi had said what had happened was sad but asked, "What is the Centre's role in them?"
The Akali Dal however said what had happened after the incident in Dadri had damaged the government's reputation and asked the BJP leadership for strict action against those who have spoken out of turn.
"The Prime Minister had spoken earlier also but clearly these 'rotor-mouths' are not paying enough heed to what he has said," Mr Gujral said.
He said what happened after the lynching incident in Uttar Pradesh "is damaging the NDA, the BJP and damaging the Prime Minister more than anybody else".
"It is high time some action is taken against anybody so that a strong message goes all the way in Sangh Parivar that this kind of nonsense will not be tolerated," he said.
On September 28 in Dadri,
52-year-old Mohammad Akhlaq was dragged out of his home by a mob and beaten to death after announcements were made at a local temple about a calf being killed.
Many of the men suspected to be in the mob are linked to a local BJP leader and after the incident, some leaders of the party made incendiary remarks.