New Delhi: Hitting back at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for his "last election" barb, the BJP on Tuesday said dynastic politics under the garb of democracy is coming to an end in the country and the emergence of true democracy is in the offing.
Mr Kharge on Monday had expressed apprehension that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections would be the last opportunity for the people to save democracy, and "if Narendra Modi wins another election, there will be dictatorship in the country. The BJP will rule India like (Vladimir) Putin in Russia."
Slamming Mr Kharge for the remarks, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said, "Dynastic politics under the garb of democracy is coming to an end, and they are wondering what will be their future."
"Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has given a totally baseless, irresponsible and objectionable statement behind which he has the evil intention of creating unrest and disturbing peace in the country. The so-called Rajvansh which is trying to save its family oriented politics is terrified over its bleak future in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections," he said.
He also took a jibe at Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, facing an Enforcement Directorate summons in a money laundering case. The agency searched his house in Delhi on Monday and claimed Soren was "missing".
The chief minister arrived at his official residence in Ranchi and chaired a meeting of alliance legislators on Tuesday.
"The opposition parties talk about democracy, but the chief minister of Jharkhand, the state where the Congress party is a partner in government, is untraceable for the past 40 hours," Mr Trivedi said.
"Whether it is Abdullah and Mufti families in Jammu and Kashmir, or Badals in Punjab, Hooda family in Haryana, all of them lost elections. Ashok Gehlot's son also lost, Akhilesh Yadav's wife lost election, in Bihar Lalu Prasad Yadav's daughter lost election...and the biggest symbol of dynastic politics Rahul Gandhi lost election," he said.
"Whatever Kharge ji is saying, the real meaning is dynastic politics under the garb of democracy has been totally discarded by voters in the last election....and the true emergence of true democracy is in the offing," he added.
Mr Trivedi asserted that only two prime ministers were elected democratically in India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi.
"The Congress party gave so many prime ministers, but not one was elected or chosen by the people of our country. In the long political history of our country there have been just two prime ministers who were democratically elected -- Atal Bihari Vajpayee ji and Narendra Modi ji," he said.
Trivedi said Jawaharlal Nehru was first elected as prime minister with "zero votes".
He said in April 1946, at the Congress Working Committee meeting, out of 16 votes, all but two went to Vallabhbhai Patel.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh was chosen as PM by the Congress president and not elected by people, he said.
"Did Indira Gandhi come to power through votes? No, she first became the prime minister by an internal decision of the Congress," he said, adding Rajiv Gandhi became the prime minister as he got sympathy after his mother Indira Gandhi's death.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)