"We are no strangers to the streets ourselves," Union Home Minister Amit Shah told Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Karnal, Haryana, on Thursday. "If you insist on gathering crowds, the workers of the BJP will be there to give you a fitting reply. The BJP respond to you in Parliament, in state assemblies, in villages, fields and on roads”
Shah’s message summed up the BJP's response to the Congress and other Opposition parties over their campaign against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Addressing a 'Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao' rally, Shah challenged the Congress leader to take the debate to Parliament instead of holding protests on the streets. He offered to hold a special session to discuss the SIR issue.
Thursday (November 5) is the last day of the BJP's nationwide campaign, which began on October 22. Over the past 15 days, the party has organised rallies and padyatras at major headquarters across the country, with Union ministers, chief ministers, state party presidents and other senior leaders taking part.
The BJP's decision to take the fight to the streets is significant. Padyatras have traditionally been used by Opposition parties to mobilise people against governments in power. They help parties connect with voters and build pressure on the ruling establishment. This time, the ruling party has used the same method to counter the Opposition's campaign. Here, the ruling party is showing numbers on the street to counter the Opposition's charges and claims of gathering momentum. Interestingly, both sides have saved democracy as their main theme.
The party asked its senior leaders, including Union ministers, chief ministers and state party presidents, to lead the marches. BJP president Nitin Nabin held meetings with ministers and senior leaders to coordinate the campaign. The stated objective was to take the party's position on SIR to villages and households and counter what it described as “misinformation” spread by the Opposition.
The BJP also used the rallies to defend the electoral revision exercise. Addressing a padyatra in Bareilly, Union minister J.P. Nadda said SIR "aims to purify the electoral rolls by removing the names of deceased, shifted, absent and duplicate voters". He rejected the Opposition's claim that 13 crore names were being deleted and gave a breakdown of the categories of voters concerned.
Nadda also acknowledged the impact of Rahul Gandhi's campaign. "Rahul Gandhi has stirred up a hornet's nest by repeatedly raising the issue of SIR," he said. He added that NDA leaders would now "reach out to every individual and explain this issue to the public".
The BJP's response also involved attacking the Opposition's approach. Nadda accused its leaders of making allegations and then avoiding a discussion on them. "These people practise 'hit-and-run' politics. They throw stones and run away," he said. Nabin similarly targeted the Opposition, saying that by the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, its leaders would once again leave the field and run away.
The campaign also became a contest over crowd mobilisation. In Gorakhpur, Nabin criticised the Congress for failing to draw a large crowd at its Ramlila Maidan rally. "Despite putting in all its might and resources at the Ramlila Maidan, the Congress completely failed to gather a crowd," he said. He added that the contest was not merely about numbers but about "genuine public trust".
The comparison has extended to social media, where supporters of both sides have circulated photographs and videos of their respective rallies. The BJP also brought the 1984 anti-Sikh violence into its campaign, questioning the Congress over its decision to hold the Ramlila Maidan rally on the anniversary of the violence. It organised a separate march in West Delhi to remember the victims.
With the campaign ending on November 5, the BJP has sought to make clear that it will not allow the Opposition to have the streets to itself on SIR. The BJP has used its organisational machinery and senior leadership to take its position directly to voters.
But these street battles and show of strength are hardly over; both sides are expected to continue with their objective as elections near.
