Rahul Accuses EC, BJP Of Vote Theft
At Bihar yatra launch, Gandhi says INDIA bloc will stop conspiracy to steal polls
By : Vineeta Pandey
Update: 2025-08-17 09:28 GMT
New Delhi, Patna: Upping the ante against the Election Commission of India (ECI), Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday launched the ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ from Sasaram, Bihar, to “expose” the ECI’s alleged role in “poll rigging.” Ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, due in November, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha accused the ECI of “stealing” elections in collusion with the BJP and asserted that the I.N.D.I.A. bloc would not allow their “conspiracy” to succeed.
Countering Rahul’s charges, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar dismissed them as “mere political statements without proof” and dared him to furnish evidence of “vote chori” within seven days or apologise. “If you think a PowerPoint presentation with flawed analysis can prove wrongdoing, you are mistaken. Give evidence on oath or apologise to the nation,” he said.
The CEC explained that duplicate entries in voter rolls do not necessarily mean multiple voting, adding that Booth Level Agents of political parties are involved at every stage of voter roll preparation. He also clarified that the “House No. 0” entries relate to voters without numbered houses or proper addresses, and that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise was being undertaken to correct such errors. On the deletion of 65 lakh names during the SIR in Bihar, he said lists had been posted on district websites within 56 hours of Supreme Court directions.
Visibly unhappy, the Congress hit back, accusing the ECI of behaving like a political party. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “The LoP simply cited facts from the ECI’s own data. The Commission has exposed itself for incompetence and blatant partisanship.”
Addressing a gathering in Sasaram, Rahul Gandhi said he was asked to submit an affidavit after his press conference on “vote chori,” but no such demand was made of BJP leaders making similar claims. “Your vote is stolen and your money handed over to five or six billionaires,” he said, adding that the I.N.D.I.A. bloc will not allow elections to be stolen in Bihar or elsewhere.
The 16-day yatra will cover over 20 districts, including Aurangabad, Gaya, Nawada, Nalanda, Munger, Bhagalpur, Katihar, Purnea, Supaul, Darbhanga, East and West Champaran, and Chhapra, before concluding with a rally in Patna on September 1, the last day to add or delete names in the SIR. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, RJD chief Lalu Prasad, Bihar LoP Tejashwi Yadav, VIP leader Mukesh Sahani, CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, CPM leader Subhashini Ali, and CPI’s P. Sandosh Kumar attended the launch.