Union Home Minister Amit Shah has turned the Congress’ electoral record into a sharp counterattack against Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, arguing that the party’s repeated defeats long predate the exercise.

He also cited BJP victories in several elections to challenge allegations that electronic voting machines are responsible for the party’s success.

Addressing the Congress leader directly, Shah questioned how SIR could explain the party’s electoral setbacks over several decades, given that the exercise came into effect only after 2024.

“For 33 years, no Congress Chief Minister has won in Tripura. In Bengal, the Congress party has not achieved a victory for 54 years,” Shah said, citing the party’s performance in West Bengal, Tripura and Gujarat.

He argued that Congress’ losses since Rahul Gandhi emerged as its principal leader, and later became party president and Leader of the Opposition, warranted serious introspection.

Shah also challenged the claim that electronic voting machines drove the BJP’s electoral victories, pointing to elections conducted with ballot papers.

He maintained that the party’s performance in such contests undermined the Congress’ allegations that voting machines determined results.

Shah cites BJP’s performance in Rajasthan, Tripura

The Union Home Minister pointed to the BJP’s performance in Rajasthan’s local body elections, claiming that the party captured 90% of municipal corporations, 66% of municipal councils and 65% of municipalities.

He also highlighted the Aam Aadmi Party’s performance, saying it forfeited its security deposit in more than 85% of the wards.

Citing village committee elections in Tripura, Shah said the NDA won about 4,000 seats, 3,248 and another 900, with a combined vote share of 77.5%.

He said the Congress won only 14 of the 4,600 seats.

He further claimed that the Congress failed to win a single seat in by-elections held in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Shah cited individual results to underline his argument. In Naogaon, the BJP candidate won by 1,42,000 votes, wresting the seat from the Congress.

In Nandigram, the BJP candidate secured 76% of the vote and won by 1,22,000 votes. In Rejinagar, West Bengal, the BJP won by more than 75,000 votes, taking the seat from the Trinamool Congress.

In Puducherry, the NDA candidate from its ally, the All India NR Congress (AINRC), won by 8,482 votes, while the Congress secured only 22% of the vote, Shah said.

Amit Shah targets Congress over Gujarat results

Shah also cited the 2026 Gujarat local body election results, claiming the BJP won 90 of 104 seats across three local bodies, two municipalities and one municipal corporation.

In the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation, which falls within his constituency, the BJP secured 38 of the 44 seats. Shah said the Aam Aadmi Party contested all 32 seats but forfeited its security deposit in each one.

He added that the BJP increased its vote share in the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation by 10% from the previous election, describing the results as evidence of continued support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat.

Turning to Rahul Gandhi, Shah said the Congress had not won an election in Gujarat in 41 years, claiming its last victory came in 1985. He argued that the party’s electoral record could not be explained solely through allegations surrounding SIR.

‘You need to introspect,’ Shah said, challenging the Congress leadership to examine why it has repeatedly lost rather than attributing the BJP’s popularity to changes in electoral rolls.

His remarks placed the Congress’ allegations over SIR at the centre of a broader political confrontation, with Shah using the party’s electoral performance across several states to question Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the BJP’s victories.