Shimla, July 19 (UNI) Himachal Pradesh Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Rangila Ram Rao today asserted that it is not the Congress party but suspended party leader Vijai Singh Mankotia who has become irrelevant in the state politics.

He has achieved the status of a ''turn coat'' in the state politics and was in the habit of deserting one party and joining another for personal gains, he said in a release here.

Mr Rao said the suspended Congress leader had not even spared the former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi after claiming that he was close to them.

Similarly, he had praised the Congress and the state Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on numerous occasions in the past before accusing him of sheltering the corrupt and encouraging of corruption, he said.

Reminding Mr Mankotia about his speeches during winter session of the state Assembly at Dharamshala and budget session here, he said he had eloquently praised the Chief Minister for his leadership skills while complimenting him for the development in various social fields.

When he was a minister in the state government, everything was fine, now when he was out of power, everything had turned bad to worse, he said.

Referring to his allegations of corruption against state Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Mr Rao said since he was popular with the people of the state he had been elected chief minister five times.

He said the suspended Congress leader had failed to become a popular mass leader due to his inherent suspicious nature and behaviour.

Besides, no one knows how long his honey moon with the BJP would last as he could stab anyone in the back for his personal gains, he added.

UNI