PM Modi Criticizes Congress for Allegations Against EC
Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls out Congress for questioning Election Commission over Haryana poll results, labels it a “Parasite Party”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday lashed out at the Congress party over its complaint to the Election Commission regarding an alleged “slowdown” in updating assembly poll results in Haryana. Addressing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers in Delhi after the party’s victory in the Haryana assembly elections, PM Modi accused the Congress of attempting to tarnish the image of national institutions and misleading the public.
Modi highlighted that the Congress has a history of challenging the impartiality of key institutions, including the Election Commission, judiciary, and police, whenever election results are not in its favor. He referenced the party’s previous allegations during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and criticized its “habit” of creating doubts about India’s democratic processes.
Modi’s “Parasite Party” Jibe at Congress
The Prime Minister also targeted Congress for its alliance performance in Jammu and Kashmir. The National Conference-Congress coalition won a majority in the state elections, but Modi remarked that the Congress had weakened its allies, calling it a “parasite party” that causes harm to its own partners.
“In J-K, its allies were already worried that they were suffering losses because of Congress, and today’s results have shown the same,” Modi said, adding that wherever the Congress has allied, it has led to the failure of its partners. He noted that Congress’s poor performance has negatively impacted coalition results in various states.
Election Commission Rejects Congress’s Claims
Following Congress’s complaint, the Election Commission of India (ECI) responded, dismissing the party’s allegations as “ill-founded.” In a letter to Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh, the ECI clarified that there was no unexplained slowdown in the updating of results and that the entire counting process was conducted transparently in the presence of observers and candidates.
The Election Commission reiterated that it strictly adheres to Rule 60 of Conduct of Election Rules at designated counting centers and follows a statutory and regulatory regime. It also pointed out that Congress had raised a similar concern during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, which was also dismissed.
The ECI shared data reflecting that approximately 25 rounds of counting across constituencies were being updated every five minutes, refuting claims of delayed result dissemination.
BJP Wins Third Consecutive Term in Haryana
Despite the allegations, the BJP secured its third successive government in Haryana, winning 48 seats in the 90-member assembly, while the Congress managed to secure 37 seats. The Election Commission’s clarification on Congress’s allegations affirmed that the results were updated in real-time and no irregularities were found during the counting process.
