Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India], November 4 (ANI): Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the Congress party during the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) 'Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao march in Bhopal, stating that an irresponsible attitude is being displayed by the opposition in the country.

While participating in BJP's 'Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao' march, Union Minister JP Nadda accused the opposition of engineering institutional distrust out of electoral frustration and asserted that the Congress leadership poses a direct threat to democratic frameworks.

'The Congress party and Rahul Gandhi have become major threats to democracy,' Nadda stated.

Nadda emphasised that the Congress lacks public support, which is why they are blaming the Election Commission.

'We are here for the 'Save Democracy, Eliminate Anarchy' (Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao) campaign. The irresponsible attitude being displayed by the opposition and the Congress party is serving to create instability in the country. The Congress is doing this solely because they lack public support. That is why they are blaming the Election Commission,' Nadda stated.

Highlighting double standards in the opposition's acceptance of electoral outcomes, Nadda pointed out, 'When they win, like in Himachal or Kerala, everything is fine; but when they lose elsewhere, they label the Election Commission as dishonest. In India, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) go door-to-door to facilitate voter registration.'

Contrasting India's grassroots electoral framework with international practices, Nadda emphasised the extensive groundwork undertaken by election authorities.

He said, 'In contrast, for the US mid-term elections, individuals are required to register themselves. The Election Commission even went deep into the forest to ensure that Mahant Haridas Udasi could cast his vote. This is the strength of the Election Commission, something we must recognise.'

Levelling personal criticism against the grand old party's leadership, the Union Minister drew from his own political history during the Emergency.

He said, 'I am a victim of the Emergency myself; the police took me away right from my classroom. Entire families were thrown into jail. You simply do not know how to win people's hearts.'

Challenging the opposition's technical objections regarding voting mechanisms, Nadda questioned their credibility and past performance.

He said, 'The Election Commission had extended an invitation to participate in a hackathon. Where did the Congress party members run off to then? That is the current state of the Congress. Regarding the debate over EVMs versus ballot papers. The Congress party managed to win only one seat back when ballot papers were used. I would advise Rahul Baba to stop worrying about EVMs and instead engage in self-reflection; look within.'

Reiterating the scale of India's democratic machinery and rejecting claims of systemic voter manipulation, Nadda underscored popular backing for the current administration and said, 'Narendra Modi resides in the hearts of India's 1.4 billion people. 1,024,000 officers were deployed. Approximately 1.27 million BLOs were engaged by the Election Commission.'

Nadda addressed data anomalies and roll corrections, noting that several fake voters were subsequently struck off by the Election Commission.

'A large number of fake voters were registered, all of whom were subsequently struck off by the Election Commission. In Bengal, there was a 66% increase in the number of voters between 2004 and 2024,' Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda said. (ANI)