New Delhi, Feb 21 (UNI) The Congress today sought to take on the BJP on issue of women safety and came in defence of its ally Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh and accused that the saffron party has maintained a "stoic silence" on 'Naliya sex scandal of Kutch'. "The sex scandal of Naliya has unmasked the real 'chaal, charitra and chehra (conduct, character and face) of the BJP," Shobha Ojha, chairperson of All India Mahila Congress, told reporters here. She demanded a judicial probe into the incident and joined issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of women safety vis-a-vis Mr Modi's election campaign in Samajwadi Party-ruled UP. "Prime Minister makes big speeches about women safety and law and order in his election rallies. UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has asserted that such incidents should be probed by an independent agency. Then, why is Modiji not ready for investigation of such incidents which took place in Gujarat, Assam and other BJP-ruled states"," she asked. On alleged double standards of the BJP vis-a-vis women safety, she also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had awarded a ministerial birth to a rape accused Nihal Chand. on Naliya case, Ms Oza alleged that a formal FIR was lodged against BJP leaders and when some arrests were made "friends of accused" started threatening the family of the victim to withdraw the charges. Among other things, the Congress leader asked, "Why has BJP delayed any action against accused BJP workers and office bearers". The issue of crime against women in UP has become a major election issue for reasons more than one. The BJP last week had demanded Congress star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi to clarify whether she was with the "wrong doers" in various molestation cases against women in Uttar Pradesh and wondered why during her campaign in Amethi region she did not refer to the issue. The Supreme Court on February 17 ordered the Uttar Pradesh police to register a First Information Report (FIR) against the state Transport Minister and senior Samajwadi Party leader Gayatri Prajapati in a case of alleged gangrape of a 35-year-old woman. Mr Prajapati is the Samajwadi Party candidate to contest from the crucial Amethi seat in the ongoing Uttar Pradesh election. "Once we come to power, actions may be initiated against all wrong doers in such cases in retrospective effect," BJP leader Shrikant Sharma has said. UNI DEVN SHK 1540