Hardeep Puri Schools Rahul Gandhi For 'Ill-Researched Comment' On Mukesh Dalal's Unopposed Lok Sabha Win

Reacting to Rahul Gandhi's comments on Mukesh Dalal's unopposed win from the Surat Lok Sabha seat, Hardeep Puri pointed out that this was not the first time this has happened.

Hardeep Singh Puri slammed Rahul Gandhi for his 'ill-researched comments' on BJP's Mukesh Dalal. ( Image Source :PTI )

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday slammed Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for his "ill-researched" comment on BJP candidate Mukesh Dalal's unopposed win on the Surat Lok Sabha seat. Singh pointed out that this wasn't the first time a candidate had won an election unopposed and that the list of such winners was filled with Congress leaders.

After the BJP's Mukesh Dalal was declared winner from the Surat Lok Sabha seat, Rahul Gandhi on Monday posted on Social media: "The true face of the dictator is once again in front of the country! Taking away the right of the people to choose their leader is another step towards destroying the Constitution of Baba Saheb Ambedkar."

तानाशाह की असली 'सूरत’ एक बार फिर देश के सामने है!

जनता से अपना नेता चुनने का अधिकार छीन लेना बाबा साहेब अंबेडकर के संविधान को खत्म करने की तरफ बढ़ाया एक और कदम है।

मैं एक बार फिर कह रहा हूं - यह सिर्फ सरकार बनाने का चुनाव नहीं है, यह देश को बचाने का चुनाव है, संविधान की…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 22, 2024

Reacting to this, Hardeep Singh Puri cited media reports that listed political leaders who won the elections unopposed. "Surat is not the first time that a candidate has been elected unopposed to Parliament. 35 candidates have been elected unopposed in general elections & bypolls since independence. With yet another ill-researched comment, this time on the unopposed election of Sh Mukesh Dalal Ji in Surat, the ‘young’ & aspiring Congress leader continues to live up to his famous nickname," Hardeep Puri made a jibe at Rahul Gandhi on X, while pointing out the previous instances.

Surat is not the first time that a candidate has been elected unopposed to Parliament.
35 candidates have been elected unopposed in general elections & bypolls since independence.

With yet another ill-researched comment, this time on the unopposed election of Sh Mukesh Dalal Ji… pic.twitter.com/rrQ2B3X1Bo

— Hardeep Singh Puri (मोदी का परिवार) (@HardeepSPuri) April 23, 2024

Hardeep Puri Slams Congress's Goa Candidate 

Hardeep Puri further slammed Gandhi for fielding a candidate who believed the "Constitution was thrust upon Goans". "His belief in conspiracy theories will be shaken when he realises that this list includes his alliance partners Sh Farooq Abdullah Ji in 1980 & Smt Dimple Yadav Ji in 2012," Puri said.

Hardeep Puri also slammed Rahul Gandhi over the Congress candidate from Goa Capt Viriato Fernandes, who advocated dual citizenship with Portugal for Goans. "His lament, one must say, is highly selective because he has apparently not heard of a certain Capt Viriato Fernandes, the I.N.D.I.Alliance candidate from South Goa who is demanding dual citizenship for people of Goa stating that the Constitution was thrust upon them," Puri further said.

Fernandes on Monday said Former PM Jawaharlal Nehru had said that Goans would decide their own destiny, which did not happen. "When Goa was liberated in the year 1961, the Indian Constitution was forced upon us," Fernandes was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

Goa CM Pramod Sawant also hit out at the Congress over Fernandes's comments. He said: "Their candidate dares to undermine the Indian Constitution. Congress must stop this reckless Bharat Todo [Break India] politics immediately. Congress is a threat to our democracy."

I am appalled by the comments from Congress's South Goa candidate claiming the Indian Constitution was forcefully imposed upon Goans. Our freedom fighters believed wholeheartedly that Goa is an inseparable part of India. Congress delayed Goa's liberation by 14 years. Now, their…

— Dr. Pramod Sawant (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DrPramodPSawant) April 22, 2024