CM Himanta Targets Congress Over EC Criticism
Synopsis
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma mocked Congress President Kharge's 'pipe dream' and alleged a lone dissenter at a Congress meeting was beaten by colleagues — then asked how such a party can credibly question the Election Commission.
Key Takeaways
Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma posted a sharp Hindi attack on Congress on 25 October 2026 .
He alleged that a lone sensible member who challenged Kharge 's position at an internal meeting was assaulted by fellow Congress members.
He used the idiom ख्याली पुलाव ('pipe dream') to describe Mallikarjun Kharge 's stated position at the meeting.
Congress and other opposition parties have repeatedly raised concerns about Election Commission of India neutrality since the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The post fits a broader BJP pattern of using Congress's internal disputes to undercut its institutional criticism.
A sharp political jab landed on Sunday, 25 October 2026, when Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma turned an apparent Congress internal meeting into ammunition — mocking the party's credibility on its own favourite battlefield: the Election Commission.
Posting in Hindi, Sarma wrote: 'इस बैठक में एक ही समझदार कांग्रेसी था जिसने हिम्मत दिखाके खड़गे जी के ख्याली पुलाओ को पकड़ा।' — 'In this meeting, there was only one sensible Congress member who had the courage to call out Kharge ji's pipe dream. And the rest of the Congress members ganged up and beat that one sensible person. And these are the people who raise questions about the Election Commission.'
Kharge's 'Pipe Dream' and the Lone Dissenter
The phrase 'ख्याली पुलाव' — literally 'imaginary rice', idiomatically 'pipe dream' — is a pointed dig at Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, who has led the party since October 2022. Sarma's post implies that within a Congress meeting, a single member who dared to challenge Kharge's position was physically set upon by colleagues. The specific meeting is not publicly identified, but the framing is unmistakable: internal dissent, Sarma suggests, gets beaten rather than heard inside the grand old party.BJP's Recurring Playbook on Congress and the EC
The closing line is where the political punch lands hardest. 'And these are the people who raise questions about the Election Commission' — it is a rhetorical move BJP leaders have deployed with increasing frequency: linking Congress's internal dysfunction to its institutional credibility. The opposition, including Congress, has repeatedly questioned Election Commission of India neutrality — from EVM-VVPAT reliability debates after the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections to broader concerns about the appointment process for Election Commissioners. Sarma's framing flips the script: a party that cannot manage a civil internal meeting, he implies, has no standing to police the EC.Sarma as BJP's Northeast Voice on National Politics
As convenor of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA) and one of BJP's most prolific social-media combatants, Sarma routinely amplifies intra-Congress discord to national audiences. Sunday's post follows a familiar pattern — light on verifiable specifics, heavy on political theatre — timed to keep the EC-credibility narrative alive ahead of what could be a consequential electoral season. The ball is now in Congress's court: respond and amplify the story, or let it scroll past. Either choice has a cost.Point of View
He reframes the EC-credibility debate from institutional to personal. The timing matters — keeping the 'Congress-vs-EC' storyline alive while attaching a dysfunction tag to the opposition serves BJP's broader interest in shielding constitutional bodies from opposition scrutiny. Kharge, as party president, is the natural target; attacking him tests whether Congress will publicly defend its own internal processes. The post's lack of verifiable specifics is almost certainly deliberate — deniable enough to dodge defamation, vivid enough to generate outrage cycles.
NationPress
25 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Himanta Biswa Sarma post about Congress on 25 October 2026?
Sarma posted in Hindi alleging that at a Congress meeting, the one member who challenged Kharge's position was beaten by other Congress members, and then asked how such a party can credibly question the Election Commission.
What does 'ख्याली पुलाव' mean and who was it aimed at?
'Khyali pulao' is a Hindi idiom meaning 'pipe dream' or 'wishful thinking.' Sarma used it to describe what he called Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's unrealistic position at an internal party meeting.
Why does Congress criticise the Election Commission of India?
Congress and other opposition parties have raised concerns about EVM-VVPAT reliability and the neutrality of the Election Commission, particularly after the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha election results.
Who is Mallikarjun Kharge?
Mallikarjun Kharge has been President of the Indian National Congress since October 2022 and was previously Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
Why does Himanta Biswa Sarma frequently attack Congress on social media?
As Assam Chief Minister, a senior BJP leader, and convenor of the North-East Democratic Alliance (NEDA), Sarma is one of the party's most active social-media voices and routinely highlights Congress's internal divisions to undercut its national political positions.
