BJP demands Kharge apology over 'illegal' remark on Modi, Shah and elected governments

The BJP on Sunday demanded an apology from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and chief ministers as "illegal", saying the remarks amounted to an insult to the electoral mandate of the people.

Kharge, speaking to reporters in Karnataka's Kalaburgi on Saturday, had called for the dissolution of the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, claiming that "all the elections were illegal". He also demanded that fresh elections be held using ballot papers.

Responding to the remarks, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju questioned whether Kharge himself was an "illegal" MP and raised the same question about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and chief ministers of various states.

"Stop insulting the Constitution of India," Rijiju said in a post on X.

BJP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi also criticised Kharge's comments and sought an apology from the Congress president.

Trivedi questioned whether Kharge's own election as Congress president could be considered legal, recalling that several party leaders had sought details of the electoral college when he was elected but, he alleged, the Congress did not provide them.

"So, the first question that arises is whether your election to the post of President is illegal," Trivedi said.

He also attacked the Congress over its criticism of the electoral system, citing the political history of the party and questioning the manner in which several of its prime ministers had first assumed office.

Trivedi said Modi became the first prime minister to lead a non-Congress government with a clear majority in 2014.

He questioned whether any prime minister from the Nehru-Gandhi family had first assumed office through a direct popular mandate in a manner comparable to Modi's election victory.

Trivedi alleged that Jawaharlal Nehru's selection as prime minister in 1946 was "ethically illegal", claiming Sardar Patel had received all the votes in the Congress leadership contest.

He also referred to Indira Gandhi's elevation as prime minister amid internal Congress divisions, Rajiv Gandhi's assumption of office following his mother's assassination and the circumstances surrounding the elevation of former prime ministers P V Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh.

Trivedi accused the Congress of failing to introspect while questioning what was "legal or illegal".

He further alleged that the Congress had won elections in the past through booth capturing, ballot manipulation and violence, when CCTV coverage and independent media were not as widespread.

"The Congress cannot defend itself by blaming India's electoral system for its own failures," he said.