Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched a sharp critique of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday, challenging his recent claims regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. During his address, the senior BJP leader questioned the logic behind blaming the administrative exercise for electoral setbacks, pointing out that the process only came into effect after 2024. Shah argued that the Congress has been facing consistent electoral defeats long before these revisions were implemented, suggesting that the party's leadership needs to engage in internal introspection rather than seeking external reasons for its performance.
Addressing the criticism leveled by the opposition, Shah asserted that the party's electoral decline is tied to the tenure of its current leadership. He remarked that since Rahul Gandhi took on a primary role within the Congress—progressing to party president and eventually the Leader of the Opposition—the party has seen a steady trend of losses across the country. Shah challenged Gandhi to explain how the SIR process could be held accountable for electoral results in states like Gujarat, Tripura, and West Bengal, where he claimed the Congress has failed to secure victories for 41, 33, and 54 years, respectively.
The Home Minister also addressed ongoing opposition arguments regarding the integrity of electronic voting machines. He noted that several recent elections were conducted using traditional ballot papers, yet the results remained unfavorable for the Congress. By highlighting this, Shah argued that the reliance on ballot-related arguments fails to account for the actual electoral outcomes. He explicitly stated that the fact these elections used ballot papers effectively refutes the narrative that electronic voting machines are the sole factor influencing the BJP’s electoral success.
Expanding on the BJP's recent political performance, the Home Minister cited several regional outcomes as proof of public support. In Rajasthan's local body elections, he claimed that the BJP secured 90% of municipal corporations, 66% of municipal councils, and 65% of municipalities. Similarly, in Tripura’s village committee elections, he stated that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won approximately 4,000 seats with a 77.5% vote share, while the Congress managed to secure only 14 seats out of the 4,600 contested. Furthermore, he noted that the Congress failed to win a single seat in recent bypolls across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry.
Shah dismissed the opposition's political approach as "negative politics," accusing Gandhi of relying on fabricated media events and what he termed "Jhooth Ki Goonj" to influence public opinion. He criticized the strategy of mobilizing cadres from multiple parties to create a temporary impression of popularity, arguing that this does not constitute being the "voice of the nation." He urged the Congress to instead focus on connecting with citizens in rural areas, forests, and remote regions, suggesting that voters have rejected the party’s current political stance for decades in key states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
Looking toward the future, the Home Minister predicted a challenging cycle for the opposition. He explicitly stated that the Congress should prepare for a significant defeat in the 2029 general elections. According to Shah, the NDA is projected to return with a massive majority, marking what he described as the fourth consecutive defeat for the Congress. He concluded by emphasizing that citizens across the country continue to support Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, attributing this to the electorate's rejection of what he characterized as the party's misleading propaganda.
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