Nagpur: The Congress party faced criticism for allegedly distributing "blank copies of the Constitution" at Rahul Gandhi's event in Nagpur, Maharashtra, according to media reports.

India Today reported that the party came under fire after distributing "blank" Constitution copies at a rally urging people to uphold and protect the Constitution.

The Congress has consistently accused the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre of posing a threat to the Constitution, framing this as one of the central issues in its Lok Sabha campaign.

As part of its campaign for the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections, the Congress has renewed this message, calling on the public to remove the BJP and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena from power to safeguard the Constitution in the state.

A video posted by the Maharashtra BJP on social media, which quickly went viral, showed books labelled "Constitution of India" with only blank pages inside, except for the preamble on the first page.

The Congress, however, the Congress dismissed BJP’s allegation and accused it of spreading lies.

Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar said that the party only distributed notebooks and pens to the attendees at the event.

The BJP seized the opportunity, terming the party and its leader Rahul Gandhianti-reservation and anti-Constitution.

"Congress wants to erase the Constitution of India like this. All laws written by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar are to be deleted. That is why Rahul Gandhi had predicted that reservation would be cancelled in the interim," the Maharashtra BJP tweeted, according to the report.

"Remember, respected Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar and his constitution is not an election issue but the foundation of life of India and Indians. So the people will teach a lesson to the anti-constitutional Congress."

The red colour of the copy of the Constitution, carried by Rahul Gandhi, also drew criticism, with BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, calling it a "red book," signalling an inclination toward "urban Naxals and anarchists."

"My allegations made two days back against Rahul Gandhi have proved true about his inclination towards 'urban Naxals'. He showed the red book and tried seeking help (politically) from urban Naxals and anarchists," Fadnavis said, according to the report. "Rahul Gandhi indulges in such drama regularly. He, on a daily basis, insults the Constitution in some or other way."

Hitting back, the Maharashtra Congress accused the BJP of spreading misinformation and repeated the charge that the saffron party aims to impose Hindutva and dismantle the Constitution.

"The whole of India knows that BJP and RSS are the enemies of the real constitution, no matter how much they try to spread a false narrative by putting the cover of the Constitution on a blank book," Congress said in a post on X.

"BJP's strategy is to end the Constitution by making false accusations against those who saved the Constitution. But under the leadership of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, the Constitution-loving people of the country will never allow this cunning plan of BJP to succeed," the party added.

At the Samvidhan Samman Sammelan in Nagpur on Wednesday, the Gandhi scion iterated that the BJP and the RSS want to muffle the "voice of the country".

In a bid to assert his claim, he held a slim copy of the Constitution with a red cover and called for a nationwide caste census.

He said that the caste census will happen and the Congress will ensure that the reservation will be extended beyond the current 50 percent limit.