A sharp exchange erupted in the Karnataka Assembly after Congress MLA Pradeep Eshwar made a sarcastic remark referring to the BJP’s recent leadership change, invoking the phrase “Father of the Nation” in a way that angered BJP legislators. His comments, directed at the succession of Nitin Nabin after JP Nadda, triggered loud protests and disrupted proceedings in the House.
The commotion began when Eshwar narrated what he described as a dream during his speech. He said that in the dream, a teacher asked him who the Father of the Nation was, and he replied with the obvious answer, Mahatma Gandhi. He then extended the story sarcastically, suggesting that if the same question were asked to Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka, the response would change depending on BJP leadership, provoking laughter from Congress benches and outrage from the BJP.
Eshwar elaborated that, according to his jibe, the Leader of the Opposition would have written that JP Nadda was the Father of the Nation the previous week, while Nitin Nabin would hold that title in the current week. This remark immediately drew strong objections from BJP MLAs, who accused him of trivialising both national symbols and their party’s leadership.
As BJP legislators raised slogans and protested loudly, the situation in the Assembly grew increasingly chaotic, eventually forcing the Speaker to step in and restore order. The disruption temporarily stalled legislative business as tempers flared across the aisle, highlighting the deep political polarisation within the House.
Eshwar’s remarks came shortly after Nitin Nabin formally assumed charge as the new BJP president, succeeding JP Nadda, who now serves as a Union Minister. Nabin, a five-time MLA from Bihar’s Bankipur Assembly constituency, has been projected by the BJP as a dynamic organisational leader with a strong ideological grounding.
At 45, Nabin has become the youngest person to take charge of the party at the national level and is known for his strong association with the RSS. His elevation drew public praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who described Nabin as a “boss” while characterising himself as a mere “worker,” a remark widely circulated within party circles.
Nabin had earlier attracted the attention of the BJP leadership for his political strategies in Chhattisgarh, which played a role in the party’s decisive victory in the 2023 Assembly elections. Under his organisational influence, the BJP also secured nine out of ten Lok Sabha seats in the state during the 2024 general elections, strengthening his credentials within the party.
His appointment as BJP president followed more than a month after he was named working president of the party. Prior to this, Nabin had served as a minister handling road construction and urban development in the Nitish Kumar–led Bihar government, before stepping down from those roles to focus fully on party responsibilities.
The Congress, meanwhile, has criticised Nabin’s elevation, alleging that the BJP bypassed internal democratic processes and that real decision-making power remains concentrated with Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. BJP leaders have firmly rejected these accusations, maintaining that the leadership transition was an internal organisational matter and dismissing Congress criticism as politically motivated.
