BJP hits back after Mallikarjun Kharge's jibe at Modi 3.0: Fool's paradise

Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that the coalition government at the Centre has been formed by mistake and could fall anytime.

In the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls, the BJP bagged a total of 240 seats, falling short of the majority mark of 272, and the party relied on its allies to form the government.

"NDA government has been formed by mistake. Modi ji doesn't have the mandate. It's a minority government. This government can fall anytime. We would like it to continue. Let it be good for the country. We should work together to strengthen the country. But our Prime Minister is habitual of not letting something go on well to continue. But we will cooperate towards strengthening the country...," Mallikarjun Kharge said.

His remarks evoked a sharp reaction from Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai who said that Kharge is living in a "fool's paradise."

"After witnessing the democratic spirit in the swearing in ceremony, if Kharge thinks that the government might fall, then I think he is living in a fool's paradise," Annamalai said.

Kharge's jibe at PM Modi and the coalition government got a prompt response from his political rivals in Bihar.

While JDU reminded Kharge of the scorecards of prime ministers of Congress-led coalitions, RJD preferred toeing his line.

Former Bihar IPRD minister and JDU MLC Neeraj Kumar questioned Kharge’s intellect and asked him the scorecards of the Congress-led governments of PV Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh.

In the 1991 general election, the Congress won a similar number of seats as the BJP won in 2024. When no party could fetch a majority, Congress formed a minority government under the nearly-retired Narasimha Rao. The Congress party just-about managed to form the government.

Rao silently engineered a split in smaller parties and turned a minority Congress into a majority party in two years.

Kumar asked if Kharge was unacquainted with the legacy of Congress. "Congress is now stuck in "99 ka Chakkar".

Meanwhile, RJD stood by its ally when the NDA guns were all blazing. RJD spokesperson Ejaz Ahmad said, "Kharge is right! Popular mandate was against the Modi government. Voters didn’t accept him. Still, he rose to power."