Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi from the Lok Sabha was the darkest day in Indian democracy.

Kharge claimed that the BJP government "manipulated" the entire matter beginning from the filing of the defamation case against Gandhi, for his remarks during an election campaign speech back in 2019 in Kolar, Karnataka, and ending with his disqualification on the very next day of his conviction.