Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks on the opposition alliance I.N.D.I.A. and said “call us what you want”, but “we are India” and “will rebuild the idea of India in Manipur”.

Modi had slammed the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance or I.N.D.I.A. as the most directionless the country has ever seen and cited reviled names, such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen, to assert that people cannot be misled merely by the use of the country's name.

Parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi said the prime minister told a BJP Parliamentary Party meeting that the conduct of the opposition has been such that as if it has decided to stay in the opposition for long.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ramesh Bidhuri said the prime minister said even those with a design to divide the country had names like East India Company and Indian Mujahideen, but people will not be misled by these gimmicks.

Former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said Modi told the BJP leaders that Indian National Congress and the East India Company were founded by foreigners.

He said people were also using names, such as Indian Mujahideen and Popular Front of India, and their realities were quite different from what they tried to project.

Modi's remarks sparked a massive war of words between the Opposition and BJP leaders.

"We will rebuild the idea of India in Manipur," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also reacted to Modi's jibe and urged him to make a "comprehensive" statement in both houses of Parliament on the violence in Manipur.

Kharge said 83 days of unabated violence in Manipur require that the prime minister make a comprehensive statement in Parliament.