Bandi Sanjay Slams Rahul Gandhi Over Delhi Election Commission Protest

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar launched a scathing attack on the INDIA bloc’s protest in Delhi, questioning how hundreds of demonstrators were allowed to enter the Election Commission office. He advised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to take an appointment before seeking a meeting with Election Commission officials.

Speaking to reporters in Karimnagar on Wednesday, Sanjay said the Election Commission had been willing to meet opposition leaders on Tuesday. He questioned how hundreds of protesters managed to enter its office despite the availability of a meeting. He also criticised Rahul Gandhi for allegedly arguing with police personnel, climbing barricades and engaging in a scuffle during the protest, saying the episode had made the country “laugh.”

Sanjay said opposition leaders should wait for the Supreme Court’s verdict on a petition concerning Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, which is currently pending. He also rejected attempts to connect the Election Commission’s functioning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Sanjay accused the Congress of having a “patent” on vote and seat theft, referring to the political developments surrounding the selection of India’s first Prime Minister before Independence.

He claimed that in 1946, when the Congress discussed candidates for the interim government, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Jawaharlal Nehru were proposed. According to Sanjay, all 15 Provincial Congress Committees had backed Patel for the Prime Minister’s post, but Nehru eventually assumed office.

He alleged that Rahul Gandhi’s great-grandfather had disregarded the decision favouring Patel and secured the post, adding that Rahul Gandhi was continuing the same legacy. Sanjay said he had recently read a book on the episode but did not disclose its title.

Sanjay also claimed that the name of former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao, who died in 2004, had been removed during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Telangana.

He cited earlier statements by Rahul Gandhi and Congress leaders alleging the presence of deceased and bogus voters in electoral rolls across several states. Sanjay also referred to remarks by Kerala Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on the impact of SIR on election results.

Calling the Election Commission a constitutional institution, Sanjay accused the Congress of undermining democracy by attacking the poll body.

He further alleged that illegal immigrants and Rohingyas who entered India from Pakistan and Bangladesh before 2014 were residing in Hyderabad, including around 30,000 in Maheshwaram, and claimed some political parties were providing them government benefits.