Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK leader MK Stalin on Tuesday lashed out at the BJP-led Centre, accusing it of turning the Election Commission into a “puppet,” and asserted that the NDA would lose the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections if voting is conducted fairly.
Speaking at a rally in Muzaffarpur during the ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ led by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, Stalin said, “If elections are conducted in a fair manner, the NDA is going to lose. The Centre has made the Election Commission a puppet, run by remote control. Removing the people of Bihar from the voters’ list is not right.” His address in Tamil was translated into Hindi for the gathering.
Stalin stressed that the INDIA bloc is united to safeguard democracy. “The friendship between Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav is not just political but that of brothers. This bond will ensure victory. We have united to protect democracy,” he said.
He further backed Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of “vote theft,” saying the BJP fears exposure. “Rahul Gandhi has shown how the BJP has turned elections into a joke. The Chief Election Commissioner asks for an affidavit or apology, but will Rahul Gandhi ever get scared by all this? Never,” Stalin declared.
The rally saw a show of strength by INDIA bloc leaders, with Stalin, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, VIP founder Mukesh Sahani, and CPI (ML) leader Dipankar Bhattacharya waving to supporters from an open vehicle.
Earlier in the day, Union Minister L Murugan took a swipe at Stalin’s participation, questioning his language of address. “I don’t know which language he will speak in Bihar. If he speaks English, it reflects a colonial mindset. Our Prime Minister is erasing the colonial mindset and promoting Indian culture,” Murugan said.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Pradeep Bhandari accused Congress and RJD of “insulting Bihar’s pride and swabhiman” by inviting leaders who had previously mocked Biharis. In a post on X, he wrote, “Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav are insulting Bihar’s pride by bringing those who abuse people of Bihar to campaign in the state.”
