- 4 minutes ago
Following persistent allegations of electronic voting machine tampering and calls for a return to paper ballots, the Congress failed to secure seats, including in Karnataka where the BJP-JDS alliance swept all four seats. In Uttar Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party secured six seats while the Samajwadi Party won five. Bihar saw a fragmented mandate with representation from the National Democratic Alliance, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Jan Suraaj Party, and Independents. In Maharashtra, Mahayuti took an initial lead while counting continued in Nagpur between Congress nominee Abhijit Wanjari and the BJP. Analysts and political representatives discussed whether the MLC election results reflect organisational management challenges on the ground rather than narrative-building on traditional and social media.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Good evening, you're watching NewsTrack with me, Maria Shaquille.
00:0328 seats, 4 states and so far 0 seats for the Congress Party.
00:09A party that has questioned EVMs, alleged vote chori and demanded a return to ballot papers
00:16is now facing an uncomfortable political irony.
00:20Today's MLC results and trends have given the BJP fresh ammunition
00:24to turn Rahul Gandhi's anti-EVM and vote chori campaign back on the Congress.
00:30While the BJP-JDS alliance has swept Karnataka,
00:34regional players like the Samajwadi party have held their ground in the state such as the state of Uttar Pradesh.
00:42We have seen one seat go to Jansuraj and another one go to RJD in the state of Bihar.
00:49But the big question is, if EVMs were the problem, what explains the Congress's zero in this ballot paper battle?
00:57Is this just MLC setback or a bigger political embarrassment for Rahul Gandhi?
01:02Before I bring in the guests, here's a report.
01:0828 seats, 4 states and one prominent number, zero.
01:16That's the number linked to the Congress in this MLC contest.
01:21A party that has repeatedly cast aspirations on EVMs,
01:25alleging that the Election Commission and the BJP fix sports.
01:32Narendra Modi ji is trying to do match-fixing in this match-fixing in this match-fixing.
02:05And also wanted a return to ballot papers.
02:20But today, it seems even the ballot box is betraying it.
02:26In Congress ruled Karnataka, the BJP-JDS alliance has swept all four seats, leaving Congress with zero.
02:37Uttar Pradesh has seen a close contest, with the BJP winning six seats and the Samajwadi party five.
02:50Maharashtra has put Mahayuti ahead of the MVA.
02:56While Bihar has delivered a fragmented verdict with the NDA, RJD, Jan Suraj and Independents,
03:03all making their presence felt, barring the Congress.
03:09Prime Minister Modi has taunted the Congress, turning its anti-EVM campaign back on the party.
03:15He's asking, guess what has Congress scored in this MLC polls?
03:21The question is clear.
03:23If EVMs are the problem, what explains Congress' zero in a ballot paper contest?
03:33Results have dealt a fresh political challenge to the Congress.
03:37Congress' ballot campaign has been dented.
03:40Its street protests and repeated attacks on EVMs have yet to translate into electoral gains.
03:46The BJP's retention ratio remains high, while regional satraps continue to hold their ground.
03:54And as it relates to a sustained vote, you have been wrecked in the country,
04:00in the country, under the state of law enforcement and governments.
04:07You have worked out for a long time, but every time, the nation of rights people have been killed in
04:15this country,
04:15in the country, with this country, was eliminated by others.
04:18It has been undermined by the government and executed by the government.
04:20But the mandate, it seems that it is not quite a lot.
04:22has indebted Congress. It is continuing with its campaign against the CEC.
04:47So the political irony is hard to miss. Congress continues to sing its ballot paper
04:53Raga. But the latest ballot paper results have handed the BJP fresh ammunition to target the party.
05:02If EVM and board Chori are Congress's excuses for losses,
05:06what's its excuse this time when it's on the ballot? Bureau Report, India Today.
05:17Joining me on the show now is Charu Pragya, national spokesperson of the BJP. We have
05:22Gurmeher Kaur, national spokesperson of the Congress. Ghan Shyam Tiwari, national spokesperson
05:27of the Samajwadi Party. We'll be joined by Amitabh Tiwari in just a bit. Gurmeher Kaur,
05:32as of now, I'm looking at the numbers. It doesn't look very good for the Congress Party. Would you
05:40agree? You know, I feel like, I mean, of course, we've spoken about the results. We've accepted
05:45it. DK Shiv Kumarji has congratulated all the winners. And of course, we've been very graceful
05:51about it. However, Maharaj, I think the most revealing results of these elections have come
05:56from Bihar and very recently now from Nagpur. I'm not sure if you've found out about those.
06:02The Congress has won the Nagpur seat. We are waiting a confirmation. What we are being told
06:08right now is that the Congress is doing well. That has not been closed till now. Well, if well,
06:14then let's come back to, you know, the numbers that we know as of now, which is essentially
06:20that the Congress Party built an entire campaign, that the vote chory is happening, that the EVM
06:27machines is faulty, that the entire election should go back to the ballot paper. And an election
06:34which is held on ballot paper, the Congress performance is dismal. Is it more to do now with
06:41organizational weakness that the Congress has?
06:45See, I think we're conflating the conversation here. When we say the vote chory campaign is not
06:50simply, oh, the Congress is losing, so there must be something wrong with the electoral system.
06:58The vote chory campaign is clearly because the CEC is not doing their job properly. It's because
07:04the CEC has been to a large extent working for a different, two different people. And there have
07:11been discrepancies. The other two election commissioners have raised 14, have raised issues
07:1714 times, as the Indian Express reporting have said. So let's not conflate these two issues.
07:24The vote chory campaign is for a failed electoral system. It's not because, oh, we've not won. In fact,
07:28if, if this is what the ballot result is, and I will go back again, you know, we're talking about
07:34Karnatak exclusively. Let's talk about Bihar. Let's talk about what happened in UP. Let's talk about
07:39what happened in Varanasi. You know, in Bihar, in Patna, 30 years, five consecutive terms, the BJP has
07:45been sitting on the seat. And today, the BJP has lost the Patna teachers to RJD. You know, the BJP,
07:51what does this mean? The BJP did not lose the seat in Bihar. It has lost 30 years of almost
07:56ownership on this
07:57one time. And that's a way of looking at it. And as a political journalist who comes from the state
08:02of
08:03Bihar, the way I will see that result is that it is for the Samajwadi party to pat its back.
08:09It's for the RJD to pat its back, not for the Congress to say that its alliance partners have done
08:15well, because the Congress weakness is evident, which is organizational weakness. In the state of Bihar,
08:22it is RJD, which has won. And it is the Samajwadi party, which will be patting its back,
08:28Akhilesh Yadav in particular, for scoring that number in the state of Uttar Pradesh.
08:32So let me bring in Ghancham Tiwari now. Ghancham Tiwari, what does it do, this number,
08:37do to the alliance in the run-up to the seat-sharing talks, which is happening in the state of
08:44Uttar Pradesh?
08:46Good evening, Maria. To you, the viewers and the fellow co-panelists,
08:48there are three major headlines that are emerging from today.
08:52That in Lucknow, Rajnath Singh's best hand, in Varanasi, Mr. Modi's home constituency,
09:00in Gorakhpur, where BJP took a second-hand manufactured victory, now in Nagpur and in Patna,
09:08places that BJP would consider their fortress, they are either have been defeated or they are
09:15trying to manufacture a victory. That's point number one. Point number two, that the Prime Minister's
09:20premature tweet about the MLC results shows his nervousness. The entire BJP ecosystem, their ministers,
09:28home minister, tweeted prematurely, given that Nagpur is still contested. And hopefully, by the time this show
09:34ends, BJP would have lost Nagpur, which means that they have lost Maharashtra, a state where Gyanesh Gupta's
09:41manufactured electoral system, that produced a manufactured result. So, it tells the story of India, that when you
09:48poison the electoral system, you can manufacture an electoral outcome.
09:52I understand what you are saying in the context of the BJP. What does it do to your seat-sharing
09:58talks?
09:58Do you see this as an unreasonable demand of the Congress party when they are asking for 170 seats
10:05to contest in the state of Uttar Pradesh, the assembly elections, which will be held in the first
10:10part of, first half of 2027?
10:13I will say this before, after making the point number three. Point number three is the Prime Minister
10:17welcomed the ballot paper election. I challenge, I challenge the Prime Minister of India, the Home
10:23Minister of India and Gyanesh Gupta, this trilogy that is destructing Indian democracy, to do the
10:28U.P. elections on ballot paper. They will see what the outcomes are going to be. All the results,
10:35all the constituencies which reported, live streamed through Twitter and other places on the day of
10:39elections, all the discrepancies, both capturing misuse of administration was done by BJP. Now,
10:44to your question about seat-sharing. I think this has no bearing on seat-sharing. The seat-sharing
10:49would be decided on the wisdom of the two top leaders and the chemistry of victory rather than
10:56arithmetic of numbers. So, this dents BJP's confidence and shows their anxiety.
11:03I certainly don't see BJP's confidence being dented here. Charu Pragya, so let me bring Charu now.
11:10Charu, does this not concern you? Particularly what has been said by Ghanshyam Tiwari with regards
11:19to Varanasi, with regards to Gorakpur and what? Right now, of course, the numbers, the final result
11:25is yet to come of Nagpur, but particularly these two places. Does it concern you?
11:31Maria, good evening and namaste to everyone who's watching us today. Everything concerns us. I am not
11:37going to behave like the Congress party and celebrate every single moral victory like they seem to do,
11:43whether it was Lok Sabha 24 elections or this time with the MLC results. Every single election,
11:48big or small, concerns us. But at the same time, this is only indicative of what a thriving,
11:55brilliant democracy our country is. Today, when Congress wants to take to the streets and talk
12:01about vote-chori, they have been shown the mirror. They might talk about their alliance partners today,
12:05but Ghanshyam, my dear friend, is here on your show with you. Maybe he can shed some light on how
12:11much
12:11of their seats are they willing to give to the Congress. So, it's well and good on a good day
12:16to talk
12:16about alliances. But when it comes to the litmus test of that alliance, elections and contesting
12:21them together, that is when this friendship is put to the test and every single time they have
12:26failed at keeping their flock together.
12:28So, let me be clear right now what the details that have emerged, that is for Gurmahar and also for
12:34Ghanshyam, that still there is no clarity on Congress's win. So, on this show, I would really appreciate if that
12:43is not discussed on with regards to Nagpur.
12:45So, let's wait for the results. I am neither declaring nor saying anything. Let's wait for the results.
12:52Mumbai Tak, as of now, is reporting something which says that the BJP is leading. So, whether the Congress is
13:03leading or winning is not clear at the
13:05moment from Nagpur. So, we will wait for the final results to come in. So, let's hold on to that
13:12part before we jump to conclusion. Yes, go ahead, Chandra.
13:15Yeah. So, here's what I was trying to say. You know, this whole allegation and conversation around vote churi and
13:22then saying that if elections were done using the ballot box again, Congress would do really, really well.
13:28Congress didn't do well or rather the opposition didn't do well in all the elections or conversations also that have
13:34happened since they took to the streets with this chant of vote churi.
13:38I'll tell you how. In Delhi, Doosu elections happened. Doosu elections, the student union elections in Delhi, actually the vote
13:45is cast by the young of this country coming from every single corner of this country.
13:49So, now when the young of the country cast their vote, Congress won zero out of four seats.
13:54Again, now in these MLC elections, we very clearly see that nobody is voting for a Congress candidate at all.
14:02And as for Ghansha, I'm talking about how well Samajwadi Party has done, most respectfully, and I'm saying it in
14:10all good spirit, Samajwadi Party had performed quite well in the 24 elections as well.
14:15In the general elections, Lok Sabha elections, you had won 37 seats. So, it's not like, you know, you can
14:20say that you didn't perform well there.
14:22It's reflective of the fact that our country, our citizens…
14:27So, Kancham, you know, what the BJP is saying and others are saying is that it's a reflection on the
14:30Congress Party, not as much on the regional parties such as parties such as the Samajwadi Party and also the
14:36RJD.
14:37I'm going to come to Gurmeher just a bit because she wants to respond to Charu Pragya.
14:42But let me bring in Amitabh Tiwari. Amitabh Tiwari, your final assessment, what do you think is the big takeaway
14:47of these 28 seats?
14:50Now, essentially, I mean, takeaways for both or rather the Congress Party, the BJP and the regional parties, if you
14:57see.
14:57If you see, overall, the BJP is largely holding on to what they had won in 2020 MLC polls on
15:04an overall basis.
15:06So, despite six years being passed and anti-incumbency built in, they are still holding on to what they had
15:12won in 2020.
15:14For the Congress, they have slipped, despite creating a Mahal, at least on traditional and social media, on the vote
15:22jury and the protests we have seen in the last month,
15:24which clearly shows that either the Mahal is not translating into votes or they do not have the cadre and
15:32the leaders who translate that Mahal into votes or that Mahal does not exist at all.
15:36So, that is all debatable and we will have to wait and see the state election results of 2027 to
15:43finally decide on that.
15:45On the regional parties aspect, if you see, especially in UP, there is increasing bipolarity now.
15:51So, the Samajwadi Party is gaining as it had done in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and that is largely
15:59according to the fact that the BSP as a third force is largely a diminishing force today.
16:04So, in an increasingly bipolar election, it is becoming a very, very close election and also leading to loss or
16:12led to loss for the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
16:16In Bihar, if you see, new parties like the Jansuraj Party are also capturing the opposition space.
16:24So, they have won one seat and also an independent as well.
16:27What is damning for the Congress Party is the result of Karnataka because these elections, you have to understand, first
16:34of all, you have to register as a voter in this election.
16:37Yes.
16:38All voters cannot vote in this election.
16:41Yes.
16:41So, whichever party is in power and has the machinery or has the ability to register a higher number of
16:48voters generally wins these elections.
16:51So, I think Karnataka is something which the Congress will need to worry about.
16:55In other states, it was not much in presence both in Bihar and in Uttar Pradesh.
17:00It was largely piggybacking on Samajwati Party and the RJD and Maharashtra will have to wait and see what happens.
17:08So, in a state like Karnataka, where you have been in power, where you are in power, Gurmur, the concern
17:16really is what has the Congress done?
17:18One, because MLC election is about management.
17:22It's about typical voter management, 5 from here, 2,500 from here ensuring that you get the arithmetic right.
17:31Do you think all the poll managers of the Congress Party did not do that calculation?
17:37See, a lot can be said about it and it's already been said.
17:40We've spoken about the defeat.
17:42We've been very graceful about it.
17:43I really, really want to push the conversation.
17:45One, my question is, if the Congress Party is so irrelevant, why have we spent the last 18 minutes simply
17:51talking about the Congress Party?
17:52The same question about mismanagement.
17:54Can we spoken about Patna?
17:55It can be spoken about Varanasi.
17:57What was the BJP doing in the Prime Minister's own home seat?
18:01Did they mismanage the elections there as well?
18:04Why is the question not on them?
18:05Why exclusively is the Congress being targeted?
18:08See, we, like I said, we've been fairly graceful about it.
18:12The Congress Party is not being targeted.
18:14Of course not.
18:15These are the questions that will be asked.
18:17And I'm not saying that the Congress is irrelevant because the Congress is the principal opposition party.
18:23And all these questions will be asked to the Congress Party.
18:26I would much rather ask these questions to the government that is sitting because I imagine that's the role of
18:31all of us in journalism or in opposition space as well.
18:36To put the ruling party on the spot and ask them questions.
18:39Where did you miss whatever you missed, right?
18:43However, I want to move on from this conversation and I want to talk about something even more important, which
18:47is, see, we have to, we've spoken about DU.
18:49And again, DU, the ABVP won 13% of the vote.
18:53Where did the rest of the vote go to non-ABVP?
18:55You may have won the elections, but the voter percentage remains extremely, extremely small and the margins very thin in
19:03all those four seats.
19:04We also have to understand about the limits of the franchise of the legislative council elections because it is, it
19:10involves, like you said, Mariah, registered graduates, teachers and voters.
19:14Beyond these council elections, there are very important questions that the Congress Party and the India Bloc together is raising,
19:20which is about SIR, electoral rolls and integrity of the elections.
19:23Let's do the elections on the ballot paper, the BGP is clearly saying.
19:26No, but SIR doesn't apply here, right?
19:28Exactly, it doesn't.
19:29You know, in fact, one of our demands is that, is that all our elections.
19:33No, but no, the point that, the point that I'm making, let's have fair elections, let's have ballot paper everywhere.
19:41What is so, I mean, why, why is it, why are you, why is the BGP so opposed?
19:47My God, can I just come in?
19:48Yes, Charu, come in, come in, come in.
19:50Because what is being highlighted here by the Congress, they are forgetting how they have done.
19:55They are highlighting how you lost in a Prime Minister's constituency of Varanasi and how you lost in a bastion
20:03of, you know, the BGP president, which is in Patna.
20:08And then how you lost in Gorakpur, which is UP Chief Minister's constituency.
20:13Exactly, exactly.
20:14Mariah, see, this is what it comes down to.
20:17To remind the Congress spokesperson, ballot or EVM, Congress is not winning any elections anywhere.
20:23And I would just put a full stop after that.
20:26Moving on from there, when have we gone around blaming anyone and least of all our electorate for losing any
20:32election?
20:33And Maria, you know, you've been covering the BGP and you've been a political journalist for the longest time that
20:38we do not take any election lightly.
20:39At the same time, when we lose an election, we simply say, whatever the people of this country want, that
20:48is paramount.
20:49We've said, Charu, very politely, I have to, I have to interrupt and tell you, that's exactly what we've said.
20:55Let me finish, let me finish.
20:56Just 30 seconds, let her finish a point.
20:59Gurme, she was patiently listening to you.
21:01I would accept.
21:03Gurme, she was patiently listening to you.
21:05I am not going to be speaking over you and I would appreciate it.
21:07Go ahead, go ahead, Charu.
21:09So, here's the important bit and I was going to come to that.
21:13Today, when Congress loses all four seats in Karnataka after their chief minister has been changed, it shows that they've
21:20got trouble in their own camp.
21:22At the same time, you know, at a time of convenience, they want to claim credit for victories of their
21:26so-called alliance partners and they're not even in alliance anymore.
21:30And that could be concerning for the Congress.
21:33As for the BJP, Maria, tell me in Varanasi, did PM Modi get every single vote that was cast in
21:3924 elections or did BJP get every single vote that was cast in elections before or after that?
21:44Obviously not.
21:45And this is the point I'm trying to make in a democracy.
21:48You win some, you lose some, but when you're losing, you don't go around blaming the processes.
21:53You don't go around blaming the institutions.
21:55You don't call for the resignation of even the chief justice of India.
21:58And you definitely don't take to the streets, invite mobocracy and say, now government is going to be formed on
22:04the streets of this country.
22:06Let me bring in Ghan Cham and also Amit Aptiwari.
22:10Ghan Cham, go ahead.
22:12Well, with regards to Shahru, what is happening right now in Varanasi is exactly opposite of what she is saying
22:20about her party.
22:21Right now, people of BJP are contesting with the administration, which is also BJP.
22:28It's a triple engine sarkar against the results that are pending in Varanasi.
22:33That conspiracy theories are being hashed.
22:36Our national president Akhiresh Yadavji has tweeted, our people are guarding the entire system.
22:41This is what Gyanesh Kumar and General Shah has done to electoral system.
22:44That you have to guard your voter ID, you have to guard the name in the voter ID, you have
22:50to guard your vote when you go to poll, then you have to guard the EVMs or ballot papers.
22:55When the results are to be declared, you have to still be on guard.
22:58It is as if there is a certain kind of decoity that is part of the system and everybody has
23:05to be in the watch to prevent that decoity.
23:07What is happening in Varanasi is shameful and the premature tweet of the entire BJP ecosystem, including the Prime Minister
23:15and Home Minister on Nagpur is also shameful.
23:18Devendra Fatnam has tweeted on Nagpur.
23:20So, this anxiety of BJP is for two reasons.
23:23Let's wait for the results.
23:24The reason why I am saying is because the results are, particularly of Maharashtra, are still trickling in.
23:30There are three seats of which, the one has gone to the BJP, the other one to the Sheva Senan,
23:34the other one, the third one, which is Pune, has gone to NCP, Sharad Pawar.
23:42Again, the question is to the Congress Party.
23:44I am not talking as much about their alliance partners.
23:47The focus is on the grand old party with Rahul Gandhi himself leading the charge.
23:53In fact, news is coming in and this is with regards to the MLC polls.
23:57From Nagpur, the Congress candidate at the moment, Abhijit Vanjari, is leading with 1,350 votes.
24:06MLC polls overall.
24:08The Mahayuti has won two seats.
24:11The NCP Sharad Pawar faction has won one.
24:16The counting is still underway in Nagpur and Aurangabad.
24:20Let me bring in Amitabh Tiwari.
24:24You know, this is an election which is being watched very, very closely.
24:29You know, what has been said repeatedly about the Congress Party is that they make an effort in terms of
24:38narrative building,
24:39but when it is about the brass tacks, because election is as much about winning and losing,
24:46as much as it is about building a narrative or losing a narrative, right?
24:50So, that's where the larger issue is.
24:53This is coming in the backdrop of all the campaign which has been unleashed by the leader of opposition against
25:01the election commission.
25:02And here is the result which doesn't show the Congress Party in the right light.
25:08Now, clearly, I mean, elections are Mahal versus management.
25:14And this election is particularly about management.
25:17Management, yes.
25:17So, the Congress Party can draw heart from the fact that in UP and Bihar,
25:23they were not largely in contention and piggybacking on the allies.
25:27Their losses are largely in Karnataka and emerging whatever is the final result in Maharashtra, as we will see.
25:35And this is what they will need to work upon because narratives on social media, traditional media is fine.
25:41We have seen many candidates who have millions of followers on Instagram,
25:44but when they contest election, they're not getting even 100 votes, correct?
25:48So, on the ground, increasing or strengthening their cadre and the door-to-door connect with the people is very,
25:55very important.
25:56So, even in do-so elections, even if, let's say, the ABVP got 13% and 87% was polled
26:04against the ABVP,
26:05but there was not a single candidate against the ABVP, correct?
26:08So, even the SP and the Congress were contesting separately.
26:12So, this is all part of management.
26:14I agree. I mean, MLC elections, Gurubha is only and only about management.
26:19It's about ensuring that you get those teachers in your side.
26:24And the reason why this is crucial ahead of Uttar Pradesh in particular is
26:30that these teachers play an important role in the entire canvassing as well.
26:37That's why there is emphasis that is given on these elections.
26:41So, really appreciate your time, Charu Pragya, Gurmeher Kaur, Ganshyam Tiwari and Amitab Tiwari.
26:45Let me go straight to Rahul Gaikwad, who's joining us now.
26:50Rahul, give us the update, what really is happening in Nagpur.
26:53Congress leading by 1,350 votes.
26:56How many more rounds to go?
26:57How many more votes to be counted?
27:01So, we can see the fight between Congress and BJP in Nagpur.
27:05On an earlier update, the BJP candidate is on a leading position.
27:12But right now, we can see Congress candidate is now getting more votes in different things.
27:26So, now, right now, we can see there is a conflict between Congress and BJP karyakartas also.
27:35Because on a last two, three rounds, Congress candidate scoring more votes than BJP candidate.
27:46And this is a crucial moment.
27:47The question is, how many more rounds?
27:49How many more rounds?
27:50How many more votes to be counted?
27:58How many more rounds?
28:00How many more rounds to be counted?
28:16In Philal, we can see that Congress candidate, Abhijit Vanzari and BJP candidate,
28:22there is also a lot of difference.
28:26The neck and neck contest.
28:28Neck and neck contest at the moment?
28:30Can we say that, Rahul?
28:32Yes, yes.
28:33We can say that the neck to neck, you know, contest right now.
28:37In Nagpur.
28:38Yes.
28:39In few minutes, we can see the clear picture winning in Nagpur.
28:43The picture will emerge very clearly in the next few minutes perhaps.
28:46So, we really appreciate your time.
28:47Of course, thank you so much for joining us.
28:50The reason why these elections matter, viewers, is that this is coming in the backdrop of the entire campaign
28:56that was started by Rahul Gandhi against Votchori.
29:00What he alleged was Votchori.
29:03And then this kind of result, particularly in the state that the Congress is in power,
29:10raises the question of election management.
29:12Or should I say mismanagement.
29:14Lots to ponder for the Congress party tonight.
29:17Even as we look at the Samajwadi party holding its ground and doing better in the state of Uttar Pradesh
29:24and in the state of Bihar, RJD managing that seat.
29:28Alright, that's all from me.
29:30Thanks so much for watching.