# Sanjay challenges Congress to seek fresh mandate on ballot paper

2026-10-04T05:11:38+00:00 | Politics | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 2 independent outlets

Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar on 3 October challenged the Congress party, which has been questioning EVMs, to seek a fresh mandate using ballot papers in the four states where it is in power, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana and Keralam. The Union MoS (Home) said Congress should respond to its own leader Ramesh Chennithala's statement that a revision of electoral rolls helped remove fake entries allegedly made by the CPI(M). Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on 3 October demanded the dissolution of the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, calling all elections 'illegal' and describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and all Chief Ministers as 'illegal'. Kharge also said fresh polls should be conducted on ballot papers. Sanjay Kumar also said the scheduled visit of Amit Shah to Telangana on 4 October has been postponed due to unavoidable circumstances. Shah was to lay the foundation stone for a dairy project and attend the silver jubilee celebrations of a medical college in Karimnagar.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

Both sources carry identical PTI wire copy, making this uniform straight reporting. The story presents a political exchange: Bandi Sanjay Kumar's challenge to Congress and Mallikarjun Kharge's counter-demand to dissolve all elected bodies. No source adds analysis or commentary. The postponed visit of Amit Shah and the temple desecration remarks are reported as secondary facts. The coverage leaves open whether Congress will respond to the challenge or whether Shah's rescheduled visit will be announced.

## Coverage

Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
- theprint.in (neutral report) <https://theprint.in/india/seek-fresh-mandate-in-4-states-ruled-by-you-using-ballot-paper-union-min-sanjay-challenges-cong/3061294/>
  PTI wire copy, no editorial framing added
- siasat.com (neutral report) <https://www.siasat.com/use-ballot-paper-to-seek-mandate-in-4-states-bandi-sanjay-to-congress-3552049/>
  PTI wire copy republished without alteration

This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.

Tags: Amit Shah, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, BJP, Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge, Telangana
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Cite: https://indianopinion.org/sanjay-challenges-congress-to-seek-fresh-mandate-on-ballot-paper/#story-in-brief

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