Fear of another defeat in Bihar polls is haunting Rahul: Anurag Thakur

Former Union Minister Anurag Thakur attacked Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday (August 24, 2025), saying the Congress has “lost around 90 elections” under Mr. Gandhi’s leadership and he is now “haunted” by the “fear of another defeat” in the upcoming Bihar Assembly election.

Speaking in Hamirpur, the BJP MP said that Mr. Gandhi blamed VVPATs or EVMs after every electoral defeat, and “now, even before the polls, he is making baseless statements about the Election Commission of India”.

“It is very unfortunate if the Opposition leaders have lost faith in the country’s constitutional framework,” he said.

Mr. Thakur said that work to strengthen the constitutional institutions was undertaken during the tenure of the BJP-led governments. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made efforts to bring strict laws against corrupt leaders.

In an indirect reference to Aam Aadmi Party leaders, Mr. Thakur said that in Delhi, some Ministers continued to sign files and take decisions from jail which is “not good” for the world’s largest democracy.

“Corrupt leaders must step down from their positions,” he said in a reference to the Bills that provide a legal framework for the removal of the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, and other Ministers on arrest for 30 consecutive days on serious charges.

On the Opposition disrupting Parliament during the Monsoon Session, Mr. Thakur said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge should focus on “holding constructive discussions” in Parliament as public money is spent on its proceedings.