Kharge slams Milan Pradhan's arrest as 'murder of democracy', accuses BJP of 'vote chori' in Nandigram
New Delhi, Sept 19 (UNI) Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party over the arrest of Congress candidate Milan Pradhan in connection with the Nandigram Assembly by-election, alleging that the action was part of a brazen attempt at "vote chori" and "chunav chori" and accusing the ruling party of murdering democracy in West Bengal.
In a strongly worded post on social media platform X, Kharge alleged that the BJP was misusing agencies to target an Opposition candidate, claiming that the ruling party has become so insecure that it has been resorting to such measures even in a by-election.
"The arrest of Congress candidate Milan Pradhan in Nandigram is a brazen attempt at VOTE CHORI and CHUNAV CHORI," Kharge said. "The BJP is so insecure that even in a by-election, it is misusing agencies to target and arrest an Opposition candidate," he added. Kharge also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his description of India as the "Mother of Democracy", contrasting the phrase with what he alleged was the BJP's conduct in West Bengal.
"The Prime Minister boasts of India as the 'Mother of Democracy'. What the BJP is doing in West Bengal is the MURDER OF DEMOCRACY," the Congress President said. Declaring that the Congress will not be deterred by the reported arrest, Kharge reaffirmed the party's resolve to resist what he described as political intimidation and called for a united Opposition response. "Congress will neither be intimidated nor silenced.
A united INDIA will fight back," he said. The controversy surrounding Pradhan's arrest has intensified political tensions ahead of the Nandigram Assembly by-election. Congress leaders have alleged that the police action represents political vendetta and questioned its timing. Congress General Secretary in-charge Organisation K C Venugopal has earlier accused the BJP of attempting to "hijack democracy" and alleged that the case is being used to target the Congress candidate.
The Congress has placed the episode within a wider political confrontation over electoral fairness, Opposition participation and the alleged misuse of state institutions. While Kharge and other party leaders have levelled serious allegations against the BJP, the circumstances of Pradhan's arrest, the details of the case and the subsequent legal proceedings remain matters for verification through official records and judicial processes.
