New Delhi, Nov 13 (IANS): Delhi BJP's chief ministerial candidate Harsh Vardhan Wednesday criticised the Congress for raking up a 17-year-old rape allegation against him and said the party was "frustrated".

"First of all, there was no case against me and I wasn't even named in the police FIR (first information report). I had undergone a vasectomy in 1990 and this incident took place in 1996. Congress is just indulging in mud-slinging," Harsh Vardhan said here on the sidelines of a live interaction with Delhi's voters on Facebook.

"They (Congress) have failed to gather anything against me, so they are stooping to such low levels and making personal attacks. They are desperate and frustrated," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said.

The case pertains to the alleged rape of a maid working in Harsh Vardhan's official residence in 1996. Harsh Vardhan, who was the then health minister in the Delhi government had rebutted the allegations and even underwent a DNA test.

"I had given my DNA sample and it came out negative. The Congress leaders apologised to me after I filed a defamation case against them. This is a non-issue," he said.

The Congress Tuesday said when a woman's safety was not ensured inside Harsh Vardhan's home, what will happen to the entire city if he becomes chief minister.

The allegations came in the wake of the BJP launching a campaign against the ruling Congress, accusing it of failing to curb rapes in the city.

Watch Video