Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday alleged that the Congress party had deliberately tried to portray Hindus as terrorists following the 2008 Malegaon blast. He claimed that members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and individuals associated with Hindutva were targeted in a calculated manner.

Speaking to reporters in Nagpur during a public event, Fadnavis accused the then UPA-led government of engaging in vote bank politics. He said that terms such as "Hindu terror" and "Bhagwa Aatankwad" (saffron terrorism) were coined even as terror attacks globally were being carried out by Islamic extremists. According to him, this narrative was a political tool to malign a particular community for electoral gain, according to the news agency PTI. 

Commenting on a former Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officer’s recent claim that he was pressured to arrest RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in connection with the Malegaon blast, Fadnavis said the truth behind the case is now coming to light and exposing the larger conspiracy.