Narayanaswamy, the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Council, made the comments while addressing journalists at the BJP’s state headquarters, Jagannath Bhavan, in Bengaluru on Sunday. His remarks came during a broader attack on Gandhi and the Congress over their criticism of the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Invoking a Kannada village saying, Narayanaswamy said people traditionally joke that madness does not disappear until marriage, while marriage cannot take place until the madness disappears. He then applied the saying to Gandhi, saying he could not tell whether the Congress leader’s supposed condition had begun or ended, before asking Sonia Gandhi to get him married.
Narayanaswamy also called Gandhi a “joker”, drawing a connection between the Congress leader and the Hindi film Mera Naam Joker. The comparison formed part of a series of personal attacks as the BJP stepped up its response to Gandhi’s allegations concerning the electoral process.
Congress MLA Pradeep Eshwar responded sharply to the marriage remark, turning Narayanaswamy’s language back on him. Eshwar said the BJP leader was married and had children but, by Narayanaswamy’s own reasoning, that had not cured the behaviour he was attributing to Gandhi. His response added to the political exchange over the comments.
Eshwar, the Congress legislator from Chikkaballapur, made his response in Davanagere, saying Narayanaswamy’s family circumstances contradicted the premise of the jibe. The exchange underscored how the argument had moved beyond the original dispute over electoral rolls, with both sides using personal language while defending their respective positions on Gandhi’s campaign against the Election Commission.
The controversy unfolded against a wider confrontation between the BJP and Congress over the Election Commission. Narayanaswamy accused Gandhi of attacking the poll body out of frustration and argued that the commission was not subordinate to any political party or leader.
He challenged Gandhi’s criticism of the Special Intensive Revision, saying names removed from electoral rolls could include people registered in multiple places, those who had shifted residence and people whose documentation did not satisfy requirements. He maintained that eligible voters whose names were removed had avenues to seek inclusion.
Narayanaswamy further accused Congress leaders of portraying election commissioners as beholden to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He said the BJP was compelled to defend the commission when the institution was attacked, while rejecting allegations that electoral authorities were acting as the ruling party’s agents.
The Congress and other opposition parties have, by contrast, raised questions about the conduct of electoral-roll revisions and the Election Commission’s independence. Gandhi has repeatedly accused the poll authority of failing to address opposition concerns over voter lists, allegations rejected by the BJP and the commission.
The dispute over Narayanaswamy’s language shifted part of that policy confrontation into a debate over political decorum. His comments focused not only on Gandhi’s arguments about elections but also on his private life, prompting criticism from Congress figures who said political disagreements should not descend into personal ridicule.
Narayanaswamy also questioned Gandhi’s political standing, arguing that the Congress leader continued to be projected as a youth figure despite his age and aspirations for the prime ministership. He said national leadership depended on electoral support rather than political branding.
The BJP leader separately referred to Sonia Gandhi’s voter registration before she acquired citizenship, an issue BJP leaders have raised previously, and demanded an answer from Rahul Gandhi. He used the point while disputing the Congress’s broader claims of irregularities in voter registration.
