Congress is using democracy slogan to cover up electoral defeats: R. Ashok

Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashok addressing a press conference in Hubballi on October 31, 2026. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Legislative Assembly R. Ashok accused the Congress of launching its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar out of political desperation and to divert public attention from its electoral defeats.

Addressing a press conference in Hubballi on October 31, he said the Congress questioned democratic institutions and the electoral process only when the results went against the party. The party had failed to accept the people’s verdict in several elections, including 59 Assembly constituencies in which it lost, he alleged.

“Why does the Congress have a different stand when it loses an election? It accepts the process when it wins, but questions it when defeated,” he said, referring to the party’s allegations of vote theft and irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Mr. Ashok questioned the Congress’s claims about large-scale deletion of voters, including the alleged removal of 24 lakh names on account of death in Karnataka.

On the clean sweep by BJP in recent polls in Karnataka, Mr. Ashok said if the elections were held with EVMs, by this time Congress would have attributed to theft. “Through ballot, Congress has been handed a bullet,” he said.

The Congress is free to organise protests as part of its democratic rights, but threats to create unrest and indulge in violence could not be justified, he said. The campaign was aimed at reviving the Congress politically rather than protecting democracy, he alleged.

“The Congress should accept the people’s verdict and prove its strength through the ballot box,” he said, expressing confidence that the BJP would win 149 seats in the next Assembly election.

On the Karnataka government’s handling of drought relief, Mr. Ashok accused the Congress government of failing to provide the promised assistance to farmers. He said the BJP government, when in power, had released drought relief funds without waiting for assistance from the Centre .

He questioned the government of Karnataka over the delay in distributing the ₹2,500 assistance announced for drought-affected farmers and asked when the promised amount would reach beneficiaries.

He sought details of the funds received by Karnataka under the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). Rejecting allegations by Congress that the Centre had neglected Karnataka, he claimed that the State had received five times more assistance than before, even after accounting for devaluation of the rupee.

Referring to the ongoing protest by sugarcane growers, Mr. Ashok said the issue was serious and required a joint effort by the State and the Centre. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi had held discussions on the matter, and both governments should work together to address the concerns of farmers, he said.

Published - October 31, 2026 03:40 pm IST