Former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday accused the BJP of undermining the people's mandate by inducting opposition MPs into the NDA and alleged that the ruling party was seeking to weaken democratic opposition voices.
In a statement, the senior Congress leader said the BJP had sought a "400 paar" mandate in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but was restricted to 240 seats by voters and now relied on coalition partners to remain in power.
"The BJP's continued poaching of Members of Parliament is a direct and open challenge to the people's mandate. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had appealed to the public to give it '400 paar' seats. However, the alert and aware people of the country kept it away from a majority and restricted it to just 240 seats," he said.
Referring to MPs from opposition parties joining the BJP-led alliance, Gehlot said, "Today, the NDA coalition is in power at the Centre, and there appears to be no visible strain within the alliance at present.
Even so, breaking away MPs from parties such as the Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena, and BJD and inducting them into the BJP and the NDA clearly shows that, in the face of money power and muscle power, the BJP has little regard for the people's mandate."
The Congress veteran alleged that the BJP's strategy of encouraging defections, which he said was earlier seen largely in Gujarat, had now spread across the country.
"'Now, this so-called 'Gujarat Model' has been extended across the country," he said.
Gehlot also questioned MPs who had switched sides and joined the NDA.
"They must be asked: when the people elected them for five years by voting against the NDA's policies, with what justification have they now gone and sat in the NDA's lap?" he said.
Urging young people to engage actively in democratic processes, Gehlot said they should understand the ideologies and policies of political parties before participating in politics.
He further alleged that the Narendra Modi government was ignoring key public concerns such as inflation, unemployment, corruption and paper leaks.
"Yet behind the scenes, the unethical buying and selling of MPs continues unabated.
Does this government want to completely crush every democratic voice of opposition and dissent? Is India's great democracy now on the verge of gasping its last breath?" Gehlot said.
He also noted that Rahul Gandhi had consistently raised issues related to the Constitution both inside and outside Parliament.
(With inputs from PTI )