Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Aug 8: The Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s explosive allegations against the Election Commission of India (EC), what he termed “atom bomb” on Thursday have sparked reactions across political circles, with the ruling BJP indubitably slamming the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha MP while his party as well as others seek answers from the ECI over the claims.
Rahul Gandhi accused the EC of facilitating what he called “Vote Chori” (vote theft) to benefit the BJP particularly citing anomalies in Maharashtra and Karnataka. He spoke of irregularities like “one crore mystery voters,” destruction of CCTV footage, and refusal by the EC to share voter-related data.
He alleged that the Mahadevapura assembly segment under the Bangalore Central Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka alone had over 1,00,000 fake voters listed during the 2024 general elections. He claimed this irregularity helped the BJP win both the local assembly seat and the Bangalore Lok Sabha seat.
A senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, one of the most distinguished Congress MPs who differed with the party on “Operation Sindoor” and supported the Narendra Modi government, has emerged in support of Mr Rahul Gandhi over his voter fraud charge.
Mr Tharoor emerged as an unlikely supporter in the heated controversy and called for a serious discussion on the matter. “These are serious questions which must be seriously addressed in the interests of all parties and all voters. Our democracy is too precious to allow its credibility to be destroyed by incompetence, carelessness, or worse, deliberate tampering,” said Mr Tharoor in an online post early Friday morning. The Thiruvananthapuram MP also called on the EC to act urgently and said that its spokesperson must keep the nation informed.
Reacting to Rahul Gandhi’s claims, political activist, a prominent psephologist and Swaraj India chief Yogendra Yadav said he had always defended India’s electoral process for decades, “telling the world to learn from our Election Commission.” But the evidence presented by Rahul Gandhi changes the picture, Yogendra Yadav said. He also said EC’s “threatening” response to Mr Gandhi’s allegations instead of taking up an inquiry “only confirms” something was fishy.
“In just one assembly constituency in Karnataka, 100,000 bogus votes; 15–20% of the voter list wrong,” Yogendra Yadav said in a post on X with a video in which he said he always felt that the EC was sacrosanct.
Yogendra Yadav said in the video that he has been watching elections since 1977 and has been researching, writing, observing elections in India for the last 35 years, giving lectures all over the world and backed the EC. “I’ve given umpteen lectures all over the world, extolling the virtues of Indian election system. In the US and UK, I’ve said you should learn from the Election Commission of India. It’s this period. I’ve heard all kinds of complaints, all kinds of wide allegations, and I’ve always said, no, this is sacrosanct. Please give concrete proof before you say anything,” Yogendra Yadav said.
He said he did feel something was fishy after Madhya Pradesh election and after Haryana and Maharashtra as well, but did not have evidence to take things forward. “Madhya Pradesh election, a bit after Haryana, also after Maharashtra, I too, felt something was wrong, something was fishy, but I didn’t have evidence. And I said, without evidence, one must not speak. Now, Rahul Gandhi has presented explosive evidence to the country. In just one constituency in Karnataka, he has shown more than one lakh fake voters. More than 15 to 20 per cent votes being fudged,” he said. He said ECI threatening response to Mr Gandhi instead of investigating into the allegations, had only “confirmed my suspicion,” he said.
Sources in the poll authority said if Gandhi was not able to give the declaration he should “apologise to the nation for his absurd allegations.” The Congress leader hit back asserting he has already taken oath in Parliament to uphold the Constitution.
Speaking to the reporters on Friday, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the allegations levelled by her brother should be investigated.
“Rahul Gandhi ji has made such a big revelation, it should be investigated. The Election Commission is not providing the voter list, is not conducting an investigation, and instead is demanding an affidavit. We are continuously showing data, but why is the Commission not ready to accept its own data?” she questioned. “From the kind of statements coming from the BJP and the Election Commission, one thing is absolutely clear: there is massive fraud happening,” the Wayanad MP asserted.
“Rahul Gandhi has made such a big revelation… if there is any issue or unintentional mistake, it should be investigated. Instead of investigating, they (BJP) are asking for an affidavit. Whatever my brother has said, a day will come when other people will be empowered, and then those who have colluded in this complete destruction of democracy will have to answer for it,” she said.
Mr Gandhi is yet to submit the complaint, pointed out the BJP this morning, contending that his failing to do so would prove that he has no real case. BJP’s media cell chief Amit Malviya trained guns at the Opposition leader in an online post this morning, questioning his reluctance to submit the declaration containing the names of ineligible electors that he claimed were on the voter list.
“If he fails to do so, it will be crystal clear that he has no real case and was indulging in political theatrics only to obfuscate facts, plant doubts in people’s minds, and tarnish the image of a constitutional body entrusted with free and fair elections,” he said. “Such conduct is reckless and harmful to our democracy,” asserted Mr Malviya.
The Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said Mr Gandhi had completely lost his “composure in the agony of losing power.” “The ideologically hollow Congress party is systematically attacking constitutional institutions. It cannot be ruled out that there is a larger conspiracy against India’s democracy and Constitution behind this calculated deceit. After all, their family’s history is also filled with the dark chapter of the ‘Emergency,” he posted on X.
Mr Pradhan said by attacking the EC, Mr Gandhi was insulting the discerning decision of the public, which was universally accepted in a democracy. “Where was Rahul Gandhi when the EC invited every party to file complaints regarding the SIR [Special Intensive Revision] in Bihar? Neither Congress nor any party from the INDI Alliance approached the EC at that time,” he said.
“This double standard will no longer work — praising the EC when victorious and calling it biased when defeated! Rahul Gandhi needs to understand that his family’s victory is not the definition of democracy. The people of Bihar are now ready to give a befitting reply to such opponents of democracy and the Constitution,” said the Union Minister.
At a press conference, BJP MP and spokesperson Sambit Patra said the Congress leader was displaying “selective outrage” as he never made such accusations with respect to the States where his party won. “When they got 99 seats in the Lok Sabha election, the Congress celebrated all over the country. They did not allege the EC was compromised,” he said.
Mr Patra said the BJP, which remained in the Opposition for long, never resorted to the kind of indecorous language used by Mr Gandhi. “He threatened that if the Opposition comes to power, the EC officials would face ‘serious consequences’,” he said, adding that the language showed his “frustration” and “election rage.”
“If you think that there were irregularities in the Maharashtra polls, you should have instructed your partymen to approach the court within the prescribed time period. You did not go to court, your proxy petitioned the Bombay High Court. The court dismissed the plea terming it a gross abuse of the process of law. Then, a Constitutional Bench of High Court found no evidence of fraud or illegal voting and emphasised that the petitioner had failed to demonstrate any personal legal injury or enforceable right…,” said Mr Patra.
Referring to the EC’s letter to Mr Gandhi asking him to submit through an affidavit the relevant papers supporting the charges made on Thursday, the BJP leader said the Congress’s Karnataka unit had gone to the EC on August 3. “On August 6, the EC asked them to come on August 8. However, Mr Gandhi held the press conference a day earlier…,” said Mr Patra.
Responding to Mr Gandhi’s “My word is my oath” remarks, Mr Patra said the Congress leader’s words had “no meaning”. “That is the reason you have to give the details in an affidavit to the EC,” he said. Questioning Mr Gandhi’s charge that the BJP used the Pulwama terror attack to reverse “anti-incumbency,” the BJP leader asked if it was an attempt to insinuate that the attack was orchestrated by India. He said the manner in which the Congress leader raised doubts about Operation Sindoor, air strikes, and the surgical strike, and targeted constitutional institutions, the people would start accusing him of being a “traitor.”
Four-term BJP MP from Bangalore Central P. C. Mohan, through a post on X, added: “Electoral rolls are prepared as per the RP Act, 1950, and the Rules, 1960. Draft rolls (SSR 2024) were shared with Congress in Nov 2024. Not a single appeal was filed after the final publication. Now, after losing Bangalore Central, they cry vote theft at a press conference.”
