In a statement party head H S Dhami took exception to Shinde's observation in Delhi yesterday that Sikh militants allegedly based in Pakistan were under pressure from ISI to provoke trouble in Indian Punjab.
Terming Shinde's statement as customary rhetoric, he said the statement though not new by any Indian leadership, was aimed at portraying Sikhs in bad light.
"There is a strong anti-Pakistan feeling prevailing in India deliberately created by a section of media and its intelligence agencies. By linking Sikhs with Pakistan, the Indian leadership was trying to kill two birds with one stone," he said.