New Delhi: Back as Congress spokesman after a gap of about one-and-a-half months, Abhishek Manu Singhvi on Tuesday accused the BJP of “double standards” and “crass hypocrisy” on the issue of corruption, and compared the party to a “drama company”.

Addressing a press briefing here, he said: “On issues of corruption, the BJP can do, and does, no better than a drama company. It indulges in mere breast-beating with a double face and forked tongue.”

Singhvi had been asked not to brief the media after the Congress’s Kerala unit lodged a protest with the party high command about his appearance in a lottery case in the Kerala High Court. They said this could hurt the party’s chances in the local body elections. On Monday, the party decided to reinstate him after he reportedly told the leadership that his court appearance was an error of judgement.

Listing a series of irregularities during the NDA regime, Singhvi said the then government had not offered a Supreme Court-monitored CBI probe in any of the cases. He said there was “no CBI, no ED, no JPC” to investigate the matter.

Stating that “Karnataka re-defines corruption”, he said the BJP’s response was one of “abject surrender” instead of firm action.