രാഷ്ട്രപതിയെ വിവാദങ്ങളിലേക്ക് വലിച്ചിഴക്കുന്നു: രാഹുൽ ഗാന്ധിക്കെതിരെ രൂക്ഷ വിമർശനവുമായി സാംബിത് പാത്ര

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday launched a sharp attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, with party MP Sambit Patra calling him a "Nalayak Neta" (good-for-nothing leader) over his meeting with President Droupadi Murmu to raise allegations of electoral irregularities and seek the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Patra accused the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha of attempting to drag the President into political controversy and described his approach as anarchic.

"Yesterday, some politicians went to the President's House. After leaving, Rahul Gandhi's statement was like a 'Nalayak Neta''s statement. It pains me too while I say this, but this is how it is," Patra said.

The BJP MP acknowledged the significance of Rahul Gandhi's position as Leader of the Opposition but said his choice of words and allegations against constitutional authorities warranted criticism.

"He is the LOP of the country. But when I say he is a 'Nalayak Neta', I say this because the kind of words you have used for the Prime Minister, the kind of lies you have spoken, the whole country is watching," Patra said.

He further accused Gandhi of making inappropriate remarks about constitutional offices and institutions, alleging that his statements were undermining their credibility.

"The kind of words you have used for the constitutional positions of India, the kind of words you have used for the constitutional institutions of India, the whole country is listening," he added.

Patra also accused Gandhi of attempting to involve the President in what he described as the Congress leader's politics of confrontation.

"The anarchist Rahul Gandhi tried to pull the President of India to the anarchism which he is trying his best to conduct on the streets of India," the BJP MP said.

INDIA BLOC'S MEETING WITH PRESIDENT

The BJP's attack came a day after a 10-member delegation of INDIA bloc leaders, led by Rahul Gandhi, met President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday and submitted a memorandum seeking her intervention in the controversy surrounding the Election Commission.

The delegation raised allegations of irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Opposition parties have accused the poll body of facilitating the deletion of legitimate voters' names and alleged that electoral processes have been manipulated to benefit the BJP.

The meeting followed a protest march by Opposition MPs from Parliament towards Rashtrapati Bhavan. Police stopped the march at Vijay Chowk, where several leaders staged a sit-in while the delegation proceeded to meet the President.

After the meeting, the Congress MP from UP's Rae Bareilly said the President had asked the delegation to provide evidence supporting its allegations and assured them that she would examine the matter. He also claimed he was surprised that she had not rejected the Opposition's charges.

However, government sources rejected his assertion that the President had accepted the allegations of electoral fraud, saying it was unfortunate that she was being drawn into the controversy.

OPPOSITION TO PURSUE DEMANDS

The INDIA bloc has maintained that it will continue its campaign against the Election Commission until its demands are addressed.

Besides seeking Kumar's removal, Opposition parties have called for the suspension of the SIR exercise and action over alleged irregularities in electoral rolls.

The Election Commission, meanwhile, has maintained that its decisions follow established legal procedures and that differences of opinion among commissioners are part of institutional deliberations.

Further developments are likely to centre on the Opposition's next course of action and the response of the authorities to its allegations.