Mandaviya Taunts Congress With 'Zero' After MLC Poll
Synopsis
Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya mocked Congress's MLC election showing as 'zero' on 28 October 2026, dismissed the party's long-running EVM criticism with a sharp 'ballot or EVM, same result' taunt, and declared Prime Minister Modi's leadership permanent.
Key Takeaways
Mandaviya posted a combative Hindi message on 28 October 2026 targeting Congress after MLC election results.
He declared Congress scored zero , regardless of whether voting is conducted via EVM or ballot paper .
The remark directly rebuts Congress's recurring EVM reliability narrative , framing it as an excuse for genuine electoral losses.
The post reaffirmed Narendra Modi's enduring position: 'Modi is not going anywhere.' MLC elections are held in only select states and are decided largely by legislator and local-body votes, making them a ground-level test of party machinery.
The statement aligns with BJP's broader communication strategy of projecting dominance at every electoral tier while anchoring campaigns on Modi's brand.
Whether it is an EVM or a ballot paper, the result will be the same — Congress gets zero. That was the blunt, combative message Union Labour and Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya fired off on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, targeting the opposition in the aftermath of MLC (Member of Legislative Council) elections, adding a sharp warning: 'Modi kahin nahin jaayega' — 'Modi is going nowhere.'
Posting in Hindi on X, Mandaviya wrote: 'MLC chunav mein Congress - ZERO. EVM ho ya ballot, har jagah natija aisa hi aayega... kaan kholkar sun lijiye, Modi kahin nahin jaayega...' — 'In the MLC election, Congress — ZERO. Whether it is EVM or ballot, the result will be this everywhere... listen carefully, Modi is not going anywhere.'The EVM Barb: BJP Hits Back at a Familiar Congress Complaint
The remark is pointed for a reason. Indian National Congress and several opposition parties have periodically raised questions about the reliability of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) after electoral defeats — a line of argument that has been firmly rejected by the Election Commission of India and the Supreme Court on multiple occasions. Mandaviya's phrasing — 'whether EVM or ballot' — is a direct swipe at that recurring narrative, turning it into a punchline: change the instrument, the outcome stays the same.
MLC elections, which fill seats in state upper houses (Vidhan Parishads), exist in only a handful of states — including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. They are fought primarily through legislator and local-body votes rather than direct popular suffrage, making them closely watched as tests of ground-level political machinery.
Modi's Longevity as a Campaign Motif
Narendra Modi has anchored BJP's electoral identity since the party's landmark 2014 Lok Sabha majority, repeated in 2019 and beyond. Mandaviya's closing line — 'Modi is not going anywhere' — is less a policy statement and more a morale signal to both party cadre and voters: leadership continuity is non-negotiable, and any opposition bet on BJP fatigue is, in the minister's framing, a losing wager.
The statement fits a familiar BJP playbook: use a state-level result, however narrow the seat count, as a mirror to project national momentum. For Congress, MLC arithmetic in legislator-vote rounds has historically been challenging given its thin presence in certain state assemblies — making 'zero' a credible taunt in that specific context even when the party remains a national electoral force.
As more MLC rounds approach and assembly schedules fill the political calendar, Mandaviya's post signals that the BJP's communication strategy remains anchored on two pillars — the EVM-narrative rebuttal and Modi's irreplaceable brand — whatever the ballot format.
Point of View
And reinforce Modi's indispensability as a deterrent to opposition confidence-building. The choice to use a state-level MLC result — limited in scope — as a vehicle for national political assertion reveals how the party treats every electoral data point as a brand-management opportunity. For Congress, the 'zero' label in legislator-vote rounds is especially stinging because it underscores thin assembly presence in key states, a structural problem that predates any EVM debate. The post will energise BJP workers heading into denser electoral seasons while daring Congress to keep the EVM argument alive — territory where the ruling party clearly believes it wins.
NationPress
28 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Mansukh Mandaviya say about the MLC election?
Mandaviya declared on 28 October 2026 that Congress scored 'zero' in the MLC election and that the result would be the same whether voting is done by EVM or ballot paper, adding that Prime Minister Modi 'is not going anywhere.'
What is an MLC election in India?
An MLC (Member of Legislative Council) election fills seats in a state's upper house, the Vidhan Parishad. These elections exist in select states including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, and are decided largely by votes from elected legislators and local-body members rather than direct public voting.
Why is the EVM vs ballot comment significant?
Opposition parties, including Congress, have periodically questioned EVM reliability after electoral defeats. Mandaviya's remark — saying the outcome would be identical under either voting method — directly mocks that argument, framing EVM criticism as a deflection from genuine political weakness.
What is Mansukh Mandaviya's role in the government?
Mansukh Mandaviya serves as Union Minister for Labour and Employment and for Youth Affairs and Sports in the BJP-led central government, and is a senior party figure.
What does 'Modi kahin nahin jaayega' mean?
The Hindi phrase translates to 'Modi is not going anywhere,' signalling BJP's assertion that Narendra Modi's leadership remains firm and that opposition hopes of a post-Modi political landscape are premature.
