Accept Amit Shah's challenge to debate SIR in Parliament: JD(U) to Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi: The Janata Dal (United) asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday to abandon his "anarchic approach" and accept Union Home Minister Amit Shah's challenge to debate the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in a special session of Parliament.

JD(U) national spokesperson Rajeev Ranjan Prasad told PTI that Gandhi should raise all the issues he wants to discuss in Parliament if he has faith in parliamentary democracy.

"If Rahul Gandhi has even a little faith in parliamentary democracy, he should accept Amit Shah's challenge. The Supreme Court, while hearing the matter during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Bihar, had said the Election Commission has the jurisdiction to conduct the SIR and that the exercise was being carried out through legal means.


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"If you do not have faith in the country's great judiciary and do not believe in parliamentary democracy, this is an anarchic approach. Therefore, he should accept the challenge and come to the special session of Parliament to raise whatever issues he wants to," Prasad said.

The Congress hit back at Shah over his remarks that the government is ready to convene a special session of Parliament on the SIR issue, saying if he is serious about the proposal, he should first ensure the resignation of his "hatchet man", Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, and suspend the SIR exercise.

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Dismissing the INDIA bloc's rally in Delhi on Sunday as a "save infiltrator" rally, Shah wondered how the Congress formed governments in states, including Telangana, if the EVMs are bad, and said that Gandhi can become prime minister only in mock Parliament

Reacting to Gandhi's allegations that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in power with "foreign" support, Prasad said such remarks will prove more detrimental to the Congress leader than to the prime minister.

"His comments about the prime minister elected by crores of people in this country are an affront to India's identity and self-respect. The world today acknowledges India's diplomatic strength. Congress had created a deep dividing line between India and Bharat. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India's image has been strengthened and shaped through indigenous efforts, bridging that divide," he told PTI.

"He should respect this. If he seeks to tarnish the country's image by making allegations of foreign assistance or resorting to such propaganda against the Indian prime minister, such allegations will prove detrimental to him," he said.

A day earlier, Gandhi criticised Modi for accusing the opposition of taking foreign help to destabilise the country and challenged him to an open debate on the issue. The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha also accused Modi of occupying the prime minister's chair with "foreign help".

"Mr Modi, stop lying to this nation. You became PM because of foreign help. You remain PM because of foreign help. Your financial system is fully controlled and supported by foreigners. Foreign social media fully backs you," Gandhi had alleged in a post on X.