Bengaluru, Aug 8 (IANS) Karnataka BJP President and MLA B.Y. Vijayendra, on Friday, asked why Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, who accuse the Union government of irregularities in voting, are opposing the special comprehensive revision of the voters' list in Bihar.
Speaking to the media at the State BJP Office, Jagannath Bhavan, he said that Rahul Gandhi had publicly alleged on Thursday that irregularities took place during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections across the country and the state -- including manipulation of the voters' list and the presence of bogus voters.
"Following Rahul Gandhi's statement, senior Congress leaders in our state have spoken foolishly. They have said that Narendra Modi should resign as the country's Prime Minister and that the Lok Sabha should be dissolved -- mindless statements," Vijayendra added.
"The Election Commission conducts special revisions of the electoral roll precisely to address issues of fake and illegal voters. So, why are Rahul Gandhi and the Congress opposing such an electoral poll revision in Bihar?" he asked.
Vijayendra said that in 2005 when late Manmohan Singh was the country's Prime Minister and Mamata Banerjee, then part of the NDA, was an MP, had raised in the Lok Sabha the issue of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh being included in West Bengal's voters' list.
"When she raised the matter for discussion, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee threw papers in her (Mamata Banerjee's) face and suspended her. Has Rahul Gandhi forgotten this?" he asked.
He also refuted Rahul Gandhi's claim that all surveys had predicted Congress would win 16 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka.
"No survey said Congress would win 16 seats in Karnataka. Congress leaders must have told him (Rahul Gandhi) this," he remarked.
He said that in 2019, under B.S. Yediyurappa's leadership as the Karnataka Chief Minister, BJP had sent 25 MPs from the state to the Lok Sabha.
"This time, BJP and JD-S together have won fewer seats. Should BJP then claim there were irregularities?" he asked.
Responding to Rahul Gandhi's claims about unusually high voting between 5 and 6 p.m., Vijayendra said this was normal across the country because the heat is lower at that time and all parties work hard to mobilise voters in the final hour.
He added that Rahul Gandhi and the Congress leaders are speaking out of frustration after their defeat.
He reminded that any objections to the elections should have been filed in writing within 45 days of the results being declared.
"The defeated Congress candidate from Bangalore Central should have raised the issue. Congress has now become a party of fools," he said.
Speaking about the poll fraud allegations in Mahadevapura assembly constituency, Vijayendra challenged Rahul Gandhi, CM Siddaramaiah, and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar to first check how many fake voters there are in Chamrajpet and Shivajinagar -- constituencies with the highest minority populations -- and then come for a discussion.
"They (Congress-led state government) do not have the strength to face the Opposition (BJP, JD-S) in Parliament and will not speak about critical issues," he said.
"Rahul Gandhi's dream of becoming the country's Prime Minister will remain just that -- a dream. There is clear inconsistency in his statements and stance," Vijayendra added.
--IANS
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