NEW DELHI: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi on Saturday accused Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi of having done "no homework" on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, questioning his understanding of democracy and asking him to take responsibility for the Congress's defeats in the 2014, 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Responding to Gandhi's post on X asking Union Home Minister Amit Shah not to "confuse" Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his challenge for an open debate, Joshi alleged that the Congress leader was circulating a "cropped, out-of-context video" of Shah to make his point.
"Circulating cropped, out-of-context video of Home Minister Shri @AmitShah ji shows only one thing— @RahulGandhi’s absolute lack of homework on SIR. Rahul ji, the confusion is clearly yours, not ours!" Joshi posted.
"When you win elections, the electoral process is acceptable; when you lose, the same process suddenly becomes questionable. Is this your understanding of democracy?" he asked.
Joshi also pointed out that the Congress had lost the 2014, 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections when no SIR was conducted, and asked Gandhi whether he would take responsibility for those defeats or blame something else.
Asserting that Shah had already challenged Gandhi to discuss the issue in Parliament, Joshi said the Home Minister had also offered to convene a special session if the Congress formally requested one.
"Enough of political theatrics, Rahul ji. Bring your arguments to Parliament and debate with facts," he said.
The exchange came a day after Gandhi reiterated his willingness to debate Prime Minister Modi on any platform and at any time. Responding to Shah's suggestion that he raise the SIR issue in Parliament, Gandhi had posted on X: "Amit Shah ji, don't confuse Modi ji. Just convince him to have an open debate with me. Any platform, any time. Don't be afraid."
The controversy follows a social media poll posted by Gandhi on Tuesday, asking young Indians whether they wanted an open debate between him and Modi. He had tagged several senior BJP leaders, asking them to persuade the Prime Minister to participate.
Shah, addressing a rally in Karnal, Haryana, on Thursday as part of the BJP's 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' campaign, had challenged Gandhi to a parliamentary discussion, saying the Opposition leader should bring his concerns and arguments to the House.
Meanwhile, the dispute over SIR continued to intensify, with BJP leaders defending the exercise through rallies and Opposition parties organising protests in several states, demanding its scrapping.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) also announced a protest against SIR in Kochi on November 7. It will be the party's first major demonstration since its leaders were detained in Delhi last month during an attempted protest at Jantar Mantar.
