Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Aug 2: The defence minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday dared the Congress leader and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi to drop his “atom bomb” threat if he really had any proof against the Election Commission of India (ECI) of “rigging” elections to benefit the ruling BJP, even as the Congress leader reiterated his charge in a no-holds-barred attack on the poll body.
Repeating his charges, Mr Gandhi on Saturday alleged that his party estimated that the ECI rigged at least 70 to 100 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to help the BJP-led NDA to retain majority and Mr Narendra Modi to continue as the Prime Minister.
The Congress leader alleged that “the election system in India was already dead,” and he has 100% proof to substantiate the claim. Without spelling out details, Mr Gandhi cited the example of one constituency in which “6.5 lakh voters voted, out of which 1.5 lakh were fake.”
“Prime Minister of India is Prime Minister with a very slim majority. If 10-15 seats were rigged, it would have been possible. Although our suspicion is closer to 70, 80, 100 seats. We are going to prove to you in the coming few days how that Lok Sabha election can be rigged and was rigged,” Mr Gandhi said at All India Congress Committee’s (AICC) annual conclave on law, human rights and RTI.
The Congress leader said whoever he has “shown this investigation to has fallen off their chair.” “It makes it clear that the institution that defends the constitution has been obliterated and taken over. Now, there is absolutely no doubt that we have proof that will show that the Election Commission of India does not exist. It has disappeared. It has taken us over 6 months to find this proof. Because the Election Commission does not give us electronic voter lists. It gives us paper-wise voter lists,” he added.
Speaking in the context of its investigations, Mr Gandhi said, “When they gave us booth-wise paper voter list, that document cannot be scanned. Why would the ECI copy-proof, scan-proof the voter lists? We found that 6.5 lakh voters voted, and 1.5 lakh of them were fake. Physical paper we have from ECI. We compared each photo on the lists. You will see soon when we release this. It’s like an Atom bomb. The election system in India is dead.”
The Opposition leader said he had been suspicious about the election results since 2014, especially BJP managed sweeping victories in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh but the turning point was the 2024 Assembly elections results in Maharashtra.
“In the Lok Sabha, we won the election. And then four months later, we didn’t just lose, we were obliterated. Three formidable parties suddenly just evaporated. We started to look seriously for electoral malpractice. We found that in Maharashtra, one crore new voters appeared between the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections and the bulk of those votes go to the BJP,” he said.
Stating that he was warned by his sister and Lok Sabha member from Wayanad Priyanka Gandhi Vadra about “playing with fire” in exposing the misdeeds of the ECI with protection from the ruling party, Mr Gandhi said he was taught by his “family not to be scared of cowards.”
Mr Rajnath Singh while addressing an event in Patna lashed out at Mr Gandhi for his “atom bomb” allegation and claimed the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha did not have any proof to substantiate his claim. The senior BJP leader urged the former Congress chief to drop the “atom bomb” if he has evidence to substantiate the claim.
“Rahul Gandhi said he has prepared an atom bomb of proofs on the rigging of votes by the Election Commission… If he has an atom bomb of proof, its atomic test should be done immediately. The fact is that he does not have any proof or evidence,” Mr Singh said. The Union Minister further appealed to the Congress MP to let the constitutional institutions in the country do their duty for the sake of democracy.
“Making sensational claims is his habit. Earlier, he had made similar statements. Let Constitutional institutions do their duties. It is my appeal to Rahul Gandhi. It is good for Congress’s health and good for democracy as well,” he added.
Addressing a function organised by a media house in Patna, Mr also likened the upcoming Assembly polls in Bihar to a crossroad, “with one path (under NDA) leading to further progress and another (under the INDIA bloc) taking Bihar back to its old era of lawlessness and caste strife.” “Rahul Gandhi says he is in possession of an atom bomb. If it is so, he should detonate it at once. He should just ensure that he is himself out of harm’s way,” said the former BJP president.
Mr Singh added that the nation remembers his past rhetoric. “He had threatened Parliament of an earthquake, but when he spoke, it turned out to be a damp squib,” the BJP leader said. The Union Minister said the Election Commission of India is an institution that enjoys a reputation for unquestionable integrity.
“It is pulling out all the stops to ensure that the upcoming assembly polls in the state are held in a free and fair manner. It does not behove the Leader of the Opposition to make frivolous statements about a constitutional body,” Mr Singh said. He reminded the Congress leader that “his own party has blood on its hands, having tried to murder democracy in 1975 with the imposition of Emergency.”
The senior BJP leader also showered encomiums on alliance partner Nitish Kumar for helping the state turn the corner during his 20 years’ rule in Bihar.
“Under the leadership of Nitish Kumar, Bihar is no longer seen as a basket case. Even an internationally reputed magazine like The Economist, which had once condemned the state as the armpit of India, is now taking note of its turnaround,” Mr Singh said.