Shortly after wishing party boss Amit Shah a very happy birthday, VK Singh, the Minister of State for External Affairs, delivered sterling birthday gift for Shah who has been battling to control the motor mouths in his ranks.

Asked if the government had failed to curb incidents of violence, especially in view of two Dalit children being burnt to death in Haryana, Singh said “Don’t connect the government with it. It was a feud between two families, the matter is under inquiry”. But to further buttress his (rather simple) point, the former Chief of Army Staff was quick to add that “If someone throws stones at a dog, the government is not responsible”.

While it is understandable that the former General had a point in saying that the government couldn’t be blamed for ‘everything’, what is inexplicable is why would a former ‘Gentleman Officer’ who headed India’s army make such a brutally insensitive analogy?

The Congress was quick to corner Singh, with party spokesperson Sanjay Jha questioning Modi’s previous analogy to puppies coming under a car’s wheels (in reference to the Gujarat riot victims) and now Singh’s statement about dogs being stoned (when children had been burnt to death).

The BJP has more than its share of rabid speakers like Sadhvi Pragya and Sakshi Maharaj. What is perplexing is a supposedly educated and cultured (former) officer making remarks that cause the party further embarrassment. Nor does it speak highly of the kind of people who have been appointed to run our army.

Whenever faced with allegations of impropriety (while being in service) or making statements that are out of line (as a politician), Singh has hit back at the media – calling them ‘presstitutes’. However, despite his clear aversion to the fourth estate, he hasn’t been able to shun the microphone either, giving gems of quotes from time to time. His attraction to the media is quite strange given his denouncement that they are presstitutes.

While the BJP may in incapable of controlling the RSS-shielded hotheads in its ranks, Amit Shah and Narendra Modi must ask why a minister is allowed to speak his mind and frequently embarrass the party. It clearly shows BJP has very little control over even newbie ministers.

Singh took to Twitter, saying his statement wasn’t intended to draw an analogy; but the damage was done. Given Singh’s behaviour, the BJP is ensuring that the presstitutes will have a lot to report in days to come.