In what can be termed as a major embarrassment for the Congress party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has claimed that some of the Congress leaders had ‘chhole bhature’ in a restaurant early Mondaymorning before sitting on fast at Rajghat in New Delhi.

Congress led by its President Rahul Gandhi is observing a nationwide daylong fast against Narendra Modi led government over caste violence, communalism and the non-functioning of Parliament.

Pratyush Kanth, the Delhi BJP In-charge of Media, Social Media and IT Cell, took to Twitter and shared a picture in which Congress leaders, including Ajay Maken, Haroon Yusuf and Arvinder Singh Lovely, can be seen eating at a restaurant in New Delhi. The BJP has alleged that the picture was taken early this morning.

“For godsake, please don’t belittle our Father of the Nation @INCIndia Prez @RahulGandhi . U all can enjoy sumptuous Chandni Chowk Chowle-Bature as much as you like, but fasting was a weapon used by Gandhiji to fight Britishers & you guys are making a mockery of it,” he tweeted.

For godsake, please don’t belittle our Father of the Nation @INCIndia Prez @RahulGandhi . U all can enjoy sumptuous Chandni Chowk Chowle-Bature as much as you like, but fasting was a weapon used by Gandhiji to fight Britishers & you guys are making a mockery of it#RahulOnAFarce pic.twitter.com/fkDzBZMSoV

— Pratyush Kanth (@PratyushKanth) April 9, 2018

BJP leader Harish Khurana also shared the picture on Twitter.

According to media reports, admitting that the picture belongs to this morning, Congress leader Lovely said the photograph was clicked before 8 am and that it was a symbolic fast from 10.30 am to 4.30 pm and not an indefinite hungerstrike.

Congress workers are observing a daylong fast in all state and district headquarters in a bid to protest against the BJP government and “to promote communal harmony and peace across the country”.

Along with Rahul Gandhi, senior Congress leaders Sheila Dikshit, Kamal Nath, P C Chacko, Ajay Maken and Randeep Singh Surjewala were present at Rajghat.

The protest organised by the Congress witnessed its first controversy when party leaders Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler, both accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, arrived at Rajghat. They were asked to not sit on the main stage at the protest venue when Gandhi was about to arrive.