BJP calls Sanjay Raut 'joker of Indian politics' over Donald Trump’s post on West Bengal polls

Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription The View From India Looking at World Affairs from the Indian perspective. First Day First Show News and reviews from the world of cinema and streaming. Today's Cache Your download of the top 5 technology stories of the day. Science For All The weekly newsletter from science writers takes the jargon out of science and puts the fun in! Data Point Decoding the headlines with facts, figures, and numbers THEdge At the cutting edge of education and careers Health Matters Ramya Kannan writes to you on getting to good health, and staying there Gender Agenda Stories from beyond the binary. The Hindu On Books Books of the week, reviews, excerpts, new titles and features. Published - May 08, 2026 04:03 pm IST - New Delhi Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut. File | Photo Credit: ANI The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday (May 8, 2026) called Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut the “joker of Indian politics" over his post addressed to the U.S. President Donald Trump on the West Bengal Assembly election results, and accused the Opposition of "besmirching" India's image internationally. In a post on X addressed to Mr. Trump, Mr. Raut on Friday (May 8, 2026) questioned reports of the U.S. President congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the BJP's victory in West Bengal and said the polls are an "internal matter of India's federal democracy" and any external endorsement appears premature and misplaced. The Rajya Sabha MP claimed that "serious concerns" have emerged regarding the conduct of the elections and alleged that there were complaints of "fear, intimidation and systemic pressure." Hitting back, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla alleged that Mr. Raut, as well as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, makes such statements in opposition to Mr. Modi. "Sanjay Raut is the joker of Indian politics. He and Rahul Gandhi have taken a 'supari' (contract) to besmirch India's image for domestic political petty battles and in Modi's opposition they oppose the country," Mr. Poonawalla said in a video post on X. The BJP leader said India's democracy is being praised globally, but Opposition leaders are spreading what he called false narratives over electoral processes. "Indian democracy is being hailed across the world and this man is complaining about India on facts which are not even there," he said. Referring to the BJP's performance in the West Bengal Assembly polls, Mr. Poonawalla said people across the world are reacting to the result and claimed reports suggested Mr. Trump has also congratulated the BJP. "Apparently it is reported that Trump has also congratulated the BJP for this victory. Sanjay Raut gets so perturbed that he writes a long post on X explaining to Donald Trump how elections are rigged and everything is unfair," he said. Mr. Poonawalla alleged that the Opposition parties repeatedly question constitutional institutions whenever election results do not go in their favour. Earlier, in his post, Mr. Raut also alleged that "the Election Commission did not act impartially" and claimed that its functioning appeared to favour the BJP, which raised "questions about institutional neutrality". He also questioned the deployment of Central forces during the polls and alleged that it had created "coercion rather than confidence". Citing concerns raised by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee, Mr. Raut said allegations regarding the fairness of the process reflect a "broader unease" that cannot be ignored. "Democracy is not just about elections — it is about ensuring they are free, fair and credible. When serious allegations arise, they warrant scrutiny, not celebration," Mr. Raut said in his post, seeking a more balanced view from Mr. Trump. politics / national politics / politics (general) / bjp / Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray / Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut Copyright© 2026, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. Terms & conditions | Institutional Subscriber Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

BJP calls Sanjay Raut 'joker of Indian politics' over Donald Trump’s post on West Bengal polls

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BJP calls Sanjay Raut 'joker of Indian politics' over Donald Trump’s post on West Bengal polls

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