BJP lambasts Rahul Gandhi after heated exchange with Amit Shah in Parliament, LoP says 'HM did not answer directly'

New Delhi [India], December 11 : The BJP MPs on Thursday took potshots at Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi after a heated exchange with Home Minister Amit Shah and a walkout from the Parliament. While in his defence, Gandhi stated that Shah did not answer any of his questions directly.
On Wednesday, tensions in the Lok Sabha escalated when Union Home Minister Amit Shah and LoP Rahul Gandhi engaged in a heated exchange over allegations of "vote chori". Gandhi repeatedly challenged Shah to debate on issues raised in the press conference, while Shah responded firmly, saying "Parliament won't function as per his wish," and insisted he would address all questions in his own sequence.
The heated exchange, followed by a walkout, sparked a political row on Thursday during the Winter Session of Parliament.
Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal alleged that the Lok Sabha LoP did not even listen to the Home Minister's arguments.
"There was a discussion on electoral reforms and the Union Home Minister gave his statement in the Lok Sabha yesterday, in which he was responding to the issues raised by the Leader of the Opposition. The opposition did not even listen to his response completely. The Home Minister was right in saying, 'How can someone who is not a citizen of this country be included in the voter list of this country?'" he said.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said that Amit Shah had destroyed Rahul Gandhi's arguments on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll, claiming that no one in the nation takes him seriously anymore.
"After the partition of India, on the pyre of the martyrs, the Congress Party enjoyed the pleasures of power, and those people from the family who enjoy the pleasures of power do not know anything about the country, about the world, and about education. Rahul Gandhi came without any preparation; the three main points of his speech were excellently 'washed' by the Home Minister in the 'washing machine', therefore neither the public takes Rahul Gandhi's words seriously nor does the country take them seriously," Dubey said.
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi lambasted Gandhi, saying he does not "study properly" and does not listen to senior leaders in the Parliament.
After not attending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address on the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, this was the second such incident during the ongoing Parliament session, when the Lok Sabha LoP did not sit for a senior leader's speech.
Joshi told reporters, "Rahul Gandhi had nothing to say yesterday. The Home Minister answered so clearly, citing each and every provision of the Constitution. What other questions does he have? He (Rahul Gandhi) does not study properly. He does not even listen to the senior leaders in the Congress, hence this situation."
However, Rahul Gandhi stood his ground in criticising the Union Home Minister, saying the Home Minister had not answered any of his questions directly.
Gandhi claimed that Amit Shah was nervous while addressing the Lower House of Parliament.
"Amit Shah ji was very nervous yesterday. He used the wrong language, his hands were trembling... He is under tremendous mental pressure. Everybody saw this yesterday. What I asked him, he did not answer directly. He gave no proof. I have directly challenged him to come on the ground and let us discuss all my press conferences in the Parliament. I got no answer," he claimed.
Congress MP Rajiv Shukla also came to Rahul Gandhi's defence and said, "BJP abuses and curses the Nehru-Gandhi family from morning till evening, they take their name in everything. What a spectacle is this, the people of the country should see it."
Earlier on Wednesday, the heated exchange between the duo occurred when Rahul Gandhi interjected HM Shah during his address in the Lok Sabha on the discussion on electoral reforms.
Slamming the opposition over the SIR exercise, Shah stated that he has answers for all their allegations, including Gandhi's three press conferences.
"In his press conference, the LoP levelled allegations that the voter list is not corrected and needs to be rectified. So, what is SIR? It is the procedure to sanitise the voter list. He is opposing even when we are undertaking the process. Your defeat is certain; the voter list doesn't have to do anything with it. He said that the BJP never has to face anti-incumbency. Anti-incumbency is only against those who work against the public interest. It is true that the BJP had to face anti-incumbency very rarely. But it is not as if we have never lost any election after 2014. Double standards won't work in a democracy. When you win, EC is great. When you lose, EC is useless and works at the BJP's behest. I have answers for various of their allegations; those three press conferences also," Shah said during the discussion.
Interrupting the Home Minister, Rahul Gandhi challenged him to a debate on his three press conferences regarding the allegations of 'vote chori'.
"Yesterday, I asked why Election Commissioners were given full immunity. We want to understand their thinking behind it. He (Amit Shah) talked about Haryana. He cited one example. There are several other examples. There are 19 lakh fake voters there. Actually, let us have a debate over my press conference. Amit Shah ji, I challenge you to have a debate on my three press conferences," Rahul Gandhi said.
Responding to the LoP's remarks, Shah said the former cannot decide the order of his speech. "The Leader of Opposition (LoP) asked for answers to his questions. You can't run the parliament with your obstinacy. I will decide the order of my speech. The parliament won't function like this. He should be patient. I will answer each and every point," he asserted.
Rahul Gandhi has held at least three major press conferences since August 2025, where he alleged widespread "voter fraud and manipulation by the Election Commission (EC) in collusion with the ruling BJP." The conferences focused on alleged systematic voter deletion and duplicate entries in Karnataka and Haryana electoral rolls.