Election Commission rejects Rahul Gandhi’s 'match-fixing' charge in Maharashtra: ‘Completely absurd’

The sources said any misinformation being spread by anyone brings disrepute to the thousands of representatives appointed by political parties during elections and demotivates lakhs of poll staff who work tirelessly for the gigantic exercise

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claims of large-scale rigging in the 2024 Maharashtra polls were once again rejected by the Election Commission (EC) on Saturday.

The poll body issued a detailed rebuttal after the Leader of the Opposition’s claims, asserting that facts are completely being ignored.

What Rahul Gandhi said?

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday alleged that the 2024 Maharashtra assembly elections were a "blueprint for rigging democracy" and this "match-fixing" would next happen in Bihar and "anywhere the BJP is losing".

Underscoring that match-fixed elections are a "poison" for any democracy, he said that the side that cheats may win the game, but it damages institutions and destroys public faith.

In a post on X, Gandhi outlined the alleged electoral irregularities in a stepwise manner — fake voters are added, voter turnout is inflated, bogus voting is facilitated, and evidence is subsequently hidden.

"How to steal an election? Maharashtra assembly elections in 2024 were a blueprint for rigging democracy," Gandhi said while sharing an an op-ed published in The Indian Express.

"My article shows how this happened, step by step: Step 1: Rig the panel for appointing the Election Commission. Step 2: Add fake voters to the roll. Step 3: Inflate voter turnout. Step 4: Target the bogus voting exactly where BJP needs to win. Step 5: Hide the evidence.”

"It's not hard to see why the BJP was so desperate in Maharashtra. But rigging is like match-fixing - the side that cheats might win the game, but damages institutions and destroys public faith in the result. All concerned Indians must see the evidence. Judge for themselves. Demand answers," Gandhi said.

"Because the match-fixing of Maharashtra will come to Bihar next, and then anywhere the BJP is losing," the former Congress president claimed in his post.

ECI’s response

In response to Gandhi’s post, the Election Commission hit back stating that “facts are completely being ignored."

“Unsubstantiated allegations raised against the Electoral Rolls of Maharashtra are an affront to the rule of law. The Election Commission had brought out all these facts in its reply to the INC on 24th December 2024 itself, which is available on ECI’s website. It appears that all these facts are being completely ignored while raising such issues again and again," the ECI said.

“Any misinformation being spread, by anyone, is not only a sign of disrespect towards Law, but also brings disrepute to the thousands of representatives appointed by their own political party and demotivates lakhs of election staff who work untiringly and transparently during elections. After any unfavourable verdict by the voters, trying to defame the Election Commission by saying that it is compromised, is completely absurd,” it added.