The Congress Party has clarified that Sonia Gandhi had never used the word "sovereignty" in her speech during election campaigning for Assembly elections in Karnataka. The Election Commission had sought clarification on the alleged remarks of the former Congress president, which had triggered a political row.

"The word 'sovereignty' was never used by Smt Sonia Gandhi Ji in her speech dated May 6, 2023, at Hubballi, Karnataka," the party's official Twitter handle wrote on Wednesday.