New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has hit back at Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over his remarks on the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI) during his recent visit to Boston in United States.
Rahul’s sharp criticism on ECI was based on the outcome of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, which was won by the Maha Yuti (involving BJP) with 235 seats in the 288-member Assembly while the Maha Vikas Aghadi (involving Congress) managed to win just 50 seats, including 16 by Congress.
While addressing at an event in Boston on Sunday, Gandhi said that there is something wrong with the system and the country’s apex election body is compromised, with his claim was that more people voted in Maharashtra Assembly polls than the actual number of adults in the state.
“The Election Commission gave us a voting figure for 5.30 p.m., and between 5.30 p.m. and 7.30 p.m., 65 lakh voters voted. This is physically impossible to happen. For a voter to vote, it takes approximately three minutes, and if you do the math, it would mean that there were lines of voters till 2 am, but this did not happen,” Gandhi said.
Lashing out at Gandhi’s statement, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that Rahul Gandhi doesn’t miss an opportunity to share his hateful thoughts towards India and its democratic system on foreign land. Pradhan wrote on his X handle:
“…whenever Rahul Gandhi is abroad, he does not miss sharing his hateful thoughts towards India and India’s democratic systems. In fact, the ‘crown prince’ of the ‘royal’ family, who has been in power for decades, is irritated by the recognition India’s glorious democratic traditions are getting at the global level. This is the reason why he does not miss any opportunity to insult the country and its citizens…”
BJP MP Sambit Patra called out Gandhi a ‘traitor’ and usurped public property for his own benefit, referring to the National Herald case, whose hearing will take place on April 25.
“Rahul Gandhi, you will not be able to do politics in India, go to some other country… if you make a hole in the same plate in which you eat, you will be called a traitor… You are a traitor not just because you defame the country and allege that its democracy is lacking on foreign land but also because you have usurped public property worth several crores for your benefit,” Patra said.
