For weeks, the Congress party has been blowing the trumpet on vote chori, accusing the BJP – and by implication, its silent partner, the Election Commission – of rigging democracy itself. It even launched a web portal for citizens to register their protest against this alleged grand heist. And then, in a plot twist worthy of an OTT thriller, it pinched a bit of someone else’s work to sell the campaign.
The case of the kidnapped spy
Actor Kay Kay Menon, celebrated for his razor-sharp portrayal of intelligence officer Himmat Singh in Special Ops, was startled to see himself fronting the vote chori campaign, without ever auditioning for it. A clip from his show’s promotions was neatly repurposed in a Congress Instagram reel. The caption urged viewers to ‘stop the theft’, which might have been touching if the theft in question had not started with his footage.
Politics’ favourite four-letter word
The chor label has been passed around in Indian politics like a well-worn gavel. From ‘chowkidar chor hai’ to ‘vote chori’, it has been the national insult of choice. The latest development suggests we might need a spin-off slogan: chor ka chor, maha chor. The Congress can still claim it never stole votes – only visuals. But in the realm of political messaging, perception is everything.
Menon was polite in his outrage, stating the clip was ‘edited and used without permission’. Lawyers would call that copyright infringement. Politicians might call it campaign synergy. Either way, the incident has left the vote chori campaign with a moral hangover – shouting about stolen votes while sitting on stolen content is hardly the best optics.
Catching the thief, eventually
In the grand bazaar of Indian politics, theft is less about the act and more about who gets caught. Rahul Gandhi’s vote chori drive will probably still find its echo chamber. The BJP will frame this as poetic justice and hang it in the party headquarters. And Kay Kay Menon? He might just be pitching Special Ops: Operation Credit Roll, in which Himmat Singh finally hunts down the most slippery adversary of all – the political creative team.
In a land where everyone calls everyone else a thief, it is only a matter of time before someone checks the mirror and files a complaint.
