Senior BJP leader Smriti Irani on Tuesday took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, calling him a "prince in perpetual waiting" and accusing him of being unable to accept electoral defeats, as she launched a broad attack on the Opposition over its protests against the SIR exercise.
Addressing a press conference in Kolkata, the former Union minister claimed that the Congress had lost 56 assembly elections between 2014 and 2025, before the current SIR exercise began, and alleged that the party was blaming the Election Commission for its electoral setbacks instead of introspecting on its leadership failures.
"The Congress has been losing elections since 2014. Gyanesh Kumar was not even the chief election commissioner then. From 2014 to 2025, before the current SIR, Congress has lost 56 state assembly elections," the BJP national general secretary said.
Irani alleged that Gandhi was unwilling to accept the people's electoral verdict and was instead questioning the legitimacy of elections and constitutional institutions.
"The prince in perpetual waiting is unwilling to accept defeats. Instead of introspecting on why the Congress keeps losing elections, he is attacking the Election Commission and questioning the democratic process," she said.
Irani questioned why the Congress was opposing the removal of duplicate and ineligible names from electoral rolls, alleging that the opposition was undermining constitutional institutions by casting aspersions on the poll panel.
"Why does the Congress want duplicate and fake voters to remain on the electoral rolls?" she asked.
Attacking the Trinamool Congress, Irani alleged that the party had accommodated infiltrators in West Bengal for electoral gains.
"Why does the TMC want duplicate and fake voters in the electoral list? The TMC accommodated infiltrators for its own benefit," she alleged.
Irani's remarks came amid an escalating political confrontation over the SIR exercise, with the Congress, the TMC and other opposition parties accusing the Election Commission of facilitating "vote chori" and demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Irani said the SIR was a systematic and transparent exercise, claiming that booth-level officers (BLOs) had visited voters' homes multiple times in accordance with established procedures.
She said nearly 20 lakh booth-level agents (BLAs) from opposition parties had also been associated with the exercise, and questioned why the parties were now challenging its transparency.
The BJP leader claimed that out of approximately 13 crore names excluded from the draft electoral rolls, nearly three crore belonged to deceased voters, one crore were duplicate entries, around three crore voters could not be found at their registered addresses despite repeated visits, and nearly six crore had changed their addresses.
She said that of approximately 90 crore voters, the verification process for 90 per cent had been completed.
Questioning the Opposition's objections, Irani asked why the Congress and the TMC were so keen to retain the names of deceased and duplicate voters instead of establishing the whereabouts of those who could not be traced.
She said 12 SIR exercises were conducted in the country since 1952, and 10 of those had taken place under Congress governments.
Taking aim at the Opposition's protests, Irani alleged that more than 118 police personnel were injured during the political activities of opposition leaders.
"It is natural to question the intentions of those who, instead of seeking a change of government through democratic means, are attempting to create an atmosphere of anarchy... People express their views and bring about a change of government through polls. India is a democratic nation, not a 'regime'," she said.
Irani also accused Gandhi of making remarks against India while abroad, alleging that the Opposition was seeking foreign assistance to discredit the country and unseat the BJP government.
"Rahul Gandhi goes to London and says he wants to defeat Modi. Is it right for the leader of the opposition to make such remarks on foreign soil?" she asked.
She questioned how the LoP could travel to another country and seek support from organisations, NGOs and political circles there to remove an elected government in India.
Irani questioned the Opposition's political double standards, alleging that the Congress, the TMC and the Left parties were joining hands in Delhi despite their differences in West Bengal.
"In Delhi, Adhir da (Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury) and Mamata didi are joining hands. Why are they not doing so in West Bengal?" she asked.
Irani also criticised Gandhi's parliamentary conduct, saying that Parliament was one of the most important pillars of India's democratic system.
She alleged that organising programmes such as mock Parliament to ridicule the institution went against the country's democratic traditions.
Irani alleged that those who could not uphold the dignity of Parliament, created disorder near the Supreme Court and attacked the police could not claim to be champions of democracy.
She also accused the Congress of maintaining close associations with far-left organisations and individuals who, she alleged, supported terror outfit Indian Mujahideen.
Those who hurt Hindu religious sentiments and opposed Vande Mataram could not be expected to demonstrate respect for temples and Hindu deities, she alleged.
Irani said India's voters were the true guardians of democracy.
"No matter how much the Opposition attacks institutions such as the Election Commission, and Parliament, the awakened citizens of this country will never allow any attempt to weaken the democratic system to succeed," she said.
(With inputs from PTI)