Kolkata, Sep 30 : Criticising Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi for calling a cabinet-approved ordinance "complete nonsense" which should be "torn up and thrown away", BJP president Rajnath Singh Monday said the remarks would spread anarchy.

Describing Gandhi's outburst as an insult to the nation as well as to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party chief Rajnath Singh said Gandhi should have asked for the ordinance to be formally withdrawn, instead of publicly denouncing it.

"By asking that the ordinance be torn up, is he (Gandhi) trying to spread anarchy? He could have waited for the prime minister to come back to India and told him that the ordinance was not appropriate and should be withdrawn. He could have asked for a cabinet meeting for formally withdrawing the ordinance," Singh told reporters here.

Gandhi, in a surprise move Friday, had strongly criticised the controversial ordinance approved by the cabinet to shield convicted lawmakers.

Rajnath Singh said Gandhi's outburst was an insult to the country. "The prime minister does not belong to a particular political party, but represents the whole country. At a time when he is representing the nation on foreign soil, his own party leader snubs him. It is unfortunate and inappropriate. This has hurt the prestige and esteem of the country," Singh said.(IANS)