'Nehru, Indira Did Vote Chori': Amit Shah vs Rahul Gandhi Escalates In Parliament

Union Home Minister Amit Shah's speech in the Lok Sabha during the debate on electoral reforms saw a fiery face-off between him and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. When the Congress MP dared the minister to hold a debate on his press conference about alleged irregularities in voter lists, the BJP leader hit back, saying no one would dictate the order in which he would say things. 

Attacking the opposition during his speech on Wednesday, Shah said they have been pointing out irregularities in existing voter lists and then also objecting to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) which, he said, was aimed at updating the rolls and ensuring only eligible voters are part of them. "The voter lists are absolutely fine when you win, you wear new clothes and take oath. But when you fall flat, like in Bihar, you say there is a problem with the voter list... These double standards will not fly," he jeered.

Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi's press conferences on voter lists, one of which was dubbed a "Hydrogen Bomb", Shah said the Leader of the Opposition spoke about 'vote chori' (vote theft) when some families - a clear reference to the Nehru-Gandhi family - were "generational vote chors".

At this point, Gandhi interjected and asked Shah to reply first on why Election Commissioners had been granted immunity for any action taken while in office. Alleging that the Home minister had cherry picked certain examples from his press conferences, Gandhi threw down a dare: "Actually, let us have a debate on my press conference. Let us go. Amit Shah ji, I challenge you to have a debate on the three press conferences." 

An enraged Shah hit back: "I want to make something clear. I have been elected to legislative assemblies and the Parliament for 30 years. I have extensive experience. The Leader of the Opposition says he wants me to answer this or that question first. Let me make this clear to him: The Parliament will not work based on your wishes. I will decide the order in which I say things. He should be patient and hear my reply, I will answer everything. He will not decide the order of my speech."

Unwilling to back down, Gandhi called Shah's response "defensive and fearful".

Shah replied that he would not be provoked and said 'vote chori' actually happens when the people's mandate is defied.

Attack On Gandhi Family

Tearing into the Gandhi-Nehru family, Shah alleged the first instance of 'vote chori' happened when the first Prime Minister of Independent India was decided. He said the heads of Congress units of the provinces at the time were supposed to get one vote each.

"So, 28 votes went to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and two were cast in favour of Jawaharlal Nehru. But Nehru ji ended up being the Prime Minister," he said, prompting an uproar in the Opposition benches.

Another example of 'vote chori', he alleged, was when Indira Gandhi won from Raibareli, and the election was contested in the Allahabad High Court. The court, he said, struck down the election.

"This was a big vote chori. And what happened then? To hide the vote chori, she brought in a law that no case can be filed against the Prime Minister. The Leader of the Opposition talks of immunity to Election Commissioners, and I will respond, but what does he have to say about this? She gave herself immunity," the minister said.

"She then bypassed the judges in terms of seniority, picked the one who was fourth as Chief Justice and then won the case in the Supreme Court. This is history, no one teaches them this, it seems," he added.

Taking aim at Rahul Gandhi's mother and former Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, he pointed out that a case has been filed in court alleging that she voted before becoming a citizen of the country.

"I have just stated a fact," he said as Congress MPs objected and said there was no substance in the allegation.

Walkout

Shah went on to counter Rahul Gandhi, the Congress and the Opposition's objections to the use of Electronic Voter Machines (EVMs) and said their real agenda behind the objection to the SIR is to ensure illegal immigrants remain a part of the voter lists.

This prompted a walkout by the Opposition.

Asked about the reason for the walkout, Gandhi said outside Parliament, "The Home minister's response was defensive and he did not respond to the points we had raised. He did not speak about transparent voter lists, clarity on EVM architecture or the solid proof I had presented in my press conferences."

Shah's address was praised on Wednesday evening by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said the minister highlighted the strength of India's democracy and exposed the "lies" of the Opposition.

An outstanding speech by Home Minister Shri Amit Shah Ji. With concrete facts, he has highlighted diverse aspects of our electoral process, the strength of our democracy and also exposed the lies of the Opposition. https://t.co/oRI21Eij8H

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 10, 2025

"An outstanding speech by Home Minister Shri Amit Shah Ji. With concrete facts, he has highlighted diverse aspects of our electoral process, the strength of our democracy and also exposed the lies of the Opposition," the PM wrote on X.