Amid NDA’s celebration of PM Modi’s 12 years tenure in office, the Congress has launched a sharp attack on the central government, accusing them of undermining democratic institutions and attempting to erase India’s political history.Former Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah alleged that BJP’s celebration of PM Modi’s long tenure was “the biggest insult to democracy.”Citing the rejection of Congress leader Meenakshi Natarajan’s Rajya Sabha nomination from Madhya Pradesh, he accused the Election Commission of acting in favour of the BJP and claimed the move was part of a political conspiracy.“There were no defects whatsoever in Meenakshi Natarajan’s nomination submission process. Yet, some defects have been fabricated to reject it,” he wrote.He further accused the ruling party of engaging in “vote theft,” misusing institutions and manipulating electoral processes to strengthen its position in Parliament.Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also used the occasion to contrast PM Modi’s tenure with that of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru.Highlighting achievements made between 1947 and 1952, including the integration of princely states, adoption of the Constitution, abolition of the zamindari system and establishment of scientific institutions, Ramesh accused the Prime Minister of attempting to erase that legacy.He said PM Modi was presiding over the “Murder of Democracy” in India, alleging that key democratic institutions, including the Election Commission and voter registration systems, were under threat.“PM Modi has an unnatural obsession and fixation against Nehru. He may have crossed some milestone today that he himself declared and dubiously fabricated, but he is a millstone around India’s neck, because under MODI’s leadership, the Murder of Democracy in India is taking place,” he wrote.Ramesh also argued that unlike Nehru, who secured decisive electoral mandates, PM Modi failed to win a clear majority on his own in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and depended on NDA allies to return to office.Adding to the criticism, the Congress’s official X handle posted a brief message quoting a famous line associated with Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib: “दिल बहलाने को ग़ालिब ये ख़्याल अच्छा है” (To distract the heart, Ghalib, this thought is good).The post is a jibe at BJP’s celebrations and its attempts to draw comparisons between PM Modi and Jawaharlal Nehru.Together, the remarks reflected the Congress party’s attempt to counter the BJP’s narrative around the Prime Minister’s 12-year tenure by portraying his years in office as a period marked by weakening democratic institutions and constitutional values.
