The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of misleading the public by questioning the Maharashtra civic election process even as vote counting was under way.
The BJP’s reaction followed Gandhi’s assertion that “vote chori is an anti-national act” and his allegation that the Election Commission was “gaslighting” citizens amid a controversy over the quality of indelible ink used during Thursday’s civic polls.
Responding to Gandhi’s remarks, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said the Congress leader was attempting to pre-empt defeat by casting doubts on the electoral process. In a post on X, he said, “Bahana (excuse) brigade back! Accepting defeat before counting ends?” He further alleged, “Rahul Back to doing what he does best, discredit, distort and disinform. 'Khandani chor' now regurgitating claims of Thackerays.”
Poonawalla also questioned the outcome of Gandhi’s earlier allegations of “vote chori” during the Bihar elections.
Also read: BMC polls: Rahul Gandhi repeats ‘vote-chori’ accusation
Another BJP national spokesperson, Pradeep Bhandari, accused the Congress of routinely raising allegations to evade political accountability. “Every season the 'parivarvadi', to escape scrutiny, come up with one or the other allegation, which turns out damp squib in the court of law and the court of public opinion,” he said in a post on X.
Bhandari further claimed, “The anti-national party, which gets backing from Pakistan, is searching for a scapegoat after looking at imminent defeat in the BMC elections.”
The BJP has repeatedly dismissed Gandhi’s allegations of vote theft as “baseless”, accusing him of attempting to deflect attention from electoral setbacks.
The party has also questioned why leaders of the opposition INDIA bloc did not challenge the Bihar election results in court or before constitutional authorities.
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