Bengaluru: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday alleged that the BJP and its associates are behind the "conspiracy" and "smear campaign" against Dharmasthala, and claimed that an internal rift within the saffron party is the cause for it.

Also targeting the BJP's "Dharmasthala Chalo" movement and a massive rally planned in Dharmasthala on September 1, he urged Veerendra Heggade, the Dharmadhikari of Dharmasthala Manjunatha Swamy Temple not to allow the holy place to be misused for politics.

"The BJP is doing politics in religion. They were quiet with their mouths shut all these days. Their party leaders had welcomed the SIT probe. The family (of the Dharmadhikari) have also welcomed the SIT probe. We are making efforts to bring the truth out. Now they (BJP) are trying to make Dharmasthala impure," Shivakumar said. Alleging that an internal fight between two groups in the BJP, was the reason for the "conspiracy", the Deputy CM, without taking any names, said, "I'm on record. It is the internal fight within the BJP...."

"It is the BJP and its associates who conspired and tried to smear a black mark on Dharmasthala. Now they are trying to cover it up fearing that we may disclose the names. We don't want to do politics," he said.