NEW DELHI: The BJP said on Thursday that the Congress manufactured the theory of “Hindu terror” when in power to stop the rise of Narendra Modi, the then Gujarat chief minister, to appease its Muslim voters, as it welcome the acquittal of seven accused in the Malegaon blast case.

BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad demanded that the discharged accused, former BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur and Lt Col Prasad Purohit, should be compensated, and the prosecution apologise for allegedly using torture and planting evidence to frame them.

“The Congress can go to any extent to appease its vote bank. This case was a well-calculated conspiracy of the party for sheer vote bank politics,” he said, calling it a historic day.

Prasad said the Congress attempt to force the possibility of Hindu terror organisation saffron terrorism has fallen flat.

With Rahul Gandhi earlier dismissing questions related to the court verdict as an attempt to detract from real issues as he hit out at the government over US President Donald Trump’s critical comments on Indian economy, Prasad hit back.