India’s Home Minister Amit Shah sparked uproar in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday by calling the Nehru-Gandhi family the country’s first ‘vote thieves’. The remark came during a debate on electoral reforms, where Shah accused the Congress of hypocrisy over objections to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process meant to update voter rolls. His comments triggered a sharp exchange with Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, who challenged Shah to a public debate on election integrity.

Shah alleged that the first instance of ‘vote theft’ occurred when Jawaharlal Nehru became India’s first Prime Minister despite Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel receiving more provincial votes. He further cited Indira Gandhi’s 1975 election annulment and Sonia Gandhi’s alleged early voting as examples of Congress malpractice. Congress MPs protested, calling the allegations baseless and politically motivated.

The confrontation underscores rising tensions between the ruling BJP and Congress ahead of upcoming state elections. Analysts say the exchange reflects deepening polarization over electoral credibility and institutional trust, issues likely to dominate India’s political discourse in the coming months.