NEW DELHI: Union Minister nd senior BJP leader Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday dismissed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claim of vote theft in the Haryana Assembly polls and accused him of trying to provoke Gen Z with his “baseless narratives.”
Rijiju’s remarks came shortly after Gandhi alleged that 2.5 million voters in Haryana were fake, claiming that a “Brazilian model” had voted 22 times across 10 booths under different names. Gandhi appealed to the “young people, Gen Z of India” to stay alert to the alleged vote theft and urged them to “come forward and set things right through truth and non-violence.”
Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Rijiju said, “Rahul Gandhi addressed the press to hide his failures. There will be polling in Bihar, but, he was sharing stories about Haryana. This shows that the Congress has nothing left in Bihar and that is why he is trying to divert attention and raking up Haryana issue.”
On Gandhi’s Brazilian woman voter claim, Rijiju said, “During elections, he (Gandhi) goes abroad. During Parliament sessions, he secretly visits places like Cambodia and Thailand. Now, during the Bihar elections, he went to Colombia. When he goes abroad, he brings back certain ideas, gives them to his team and they prepare these baseless narratives, wasting everyone’s time. Politicians should talk about serious issues, not indulge in such futile issues.”
Rijiju said Gandhi’s remarks were aimed at provoking young voters but asserted that “the new generation stands firmly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi”. He accused Gandhi of trying to “defame the country” through false claims.
Rahul Gandhi also claimed to have “100 per cent proof” of vote theft, accusing the BJP of orchestrating it not only in Haryana but across several other states. He also questioned the confidence displayed by the Haryana Chief Minister Nawab Singh Saini ahead of the results.
Rijiju also referred to statements made by some Congress’s leaders to counter Gandhi’s claims. “During the Haryana elections, Congress senior leader Kumari Selja herself had said that Congress wouldn’t be able to win here, because its own leaders wanted to defeat the party. After that, a former Congress minister resigned and clearly stated that Congress lost in Haryana because its leaders themselves weren’t working on the ground,” the BJP leader said.
