BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge is a "remote-controlled" president who lacks independent authority [2].

The attack targets the internal power dynamics of India's primary opposition party, suggesting that official leadership titles mask a deeper reliance on the Gandhi family.

Poonawalla said internal divisions have repeatedly surfaced across states and within the party leadership [1]. He pointed to a specific issue in Karnataka as evidence of this dynamic, stating that Kharge's deference to Rahul Gandhi proves that the real power lies with the Gandhi family [2].

The BJP spokesperson targeted several senior figures in his critique, including Mallikarjun Kharge, Ashok Gehlot, Sachin Pilot, and Rahul Gandhi [1, 2]. By highlighting these names, Poonawalla sought to underscore alleged friction between the party's established veterans and its central leadership.

This rhetoric follows a pattern of the BJP questioning the democratic credentials of the Congress party's internal processes. The claim that the party president is merely a figurehead serves to portray the organization as unstable and fragmented, a narrative the BJP frequently uses during national political discourse.

Poonawalla said the party continues to struggle with discord that undermines its ability to function as a cohesive opposition [1].

“"internal divisions have repeatedly surfaced across states and within the party leadership."”

This attack is a strategic attempt by the BJP to frame the Congress party as a dynastic entity where formal leadership is subordinate to the Gandhi family. By labeling the party president as 'remote-controlled,' the BJP aims to delegitimize the Congress leadership's authority and exacerbate existing internal tensions between regional leaders and the central high command.