Amit Shah says video shows Congress candidate stopped ‘Bharat mata ki jai’ chant

BJP president Amit Shah on Monday accused the Congress of putting one family ahead of the country, citing a video that he said showed a Congress candidate in the Rajasthan Assembly election halting a party worker’s chant of “Bharat mata ki jai”. According to Shah, the candidate then told the worker to shout slogans in praise of Sonia Gandhi, the party’s former president, instead.

The allegation

Shah raised the video at public meetings he addressed in Madhya Pradesh, which was also heading to the polls. He said the incident proved that the Congress cared about nothing other than promoting a single family.

“The Congress should be ashamed. What is your priority? What is in your heart?” Shah said, going on to argue that anyone left unmoved by a slogan honouring the motherland had no right to the country’s food. He described the episode as evidence of what he called the party’s ugly mindset.

The BJP chief further alleged that the Congress had turned into a “private limited company” owned by the Nehru-Gandhi family. By contrast, he claimed, even a BJP worker on the point of death would be stirred into action by a slogan hailing Mother India.

Appeal to Madhya Pradesh voters

Shah urged voters in Madhya Pradesh to back what he described as the pro-people government led by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

What happened next

The Madhya Pradesh election ended with the Congress on 114 seats and the BJP on 109, and Kamal Nath became Chief Minister.

See also: Profiles of political leaders

Originally published on 20 November 2018. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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