During 26/11, Vilasrao Deshmukh was busy getting role for son: Piyush Goyal

Ludhiana: Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday fired a fresh salvo at the Congress and said former Maharashtra chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh was only concerned about getting his son a role in a Bollywood movie even when Mumbai was under a terror attack.

"I am from Mumbai. You may remember the 26/11 terror attack. The then Congress government was weak and could not do anything. The chief minister at that time (Vilasrao Deshmukh) had brought a film producer outside Oberoi Hotel while shooting and bombing was going on inside. He as concerned about getting his son a role in a movie," Goyal said while addressing the business community in Punjab's Ludhiana on Sunday.

Bollywood actor Riteish Deshmukh is the son of Vilasrao Deshmukh.

He also termed the UPA government-led by former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh as a "coward government" for failing to respond to 26/11 attacks that shook Mumbai in 2008.

"Our Armed Forces were capable then too but the decision was to be taken by the leadership. The security forces kept hoping that they would be allowed to give a befitting reply but they were not allowed to take action. That was a coward government," the Union Minister added.

The BJP has often spoken of national security this election season with its leaders referring to surgical strikes post-Uri and air-strike in Pakistan's Balakot as an example of the party's "zero-tolerance" policy on terrorism.