Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday alleged that he is receiving assistance from people within the Election Commission of India (ECI) to uncover what he described as large-scale "vote chori" (vote theft) in the country.
"We have started getting help from inside the Election Commission. This was not happening before, but now we are getting information from within the Commission - and this is not going to stop. The people of India will not tolerate it. Once the youth realise that votes are being stolen, their strength will emerge," Gandhi said at a press conference at the Congress headquarters, Indira Bhawan, earlier in the day.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha also accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of "protecting vote thieves," claiming he was aware of irregularities in the deletion of genuine voters and the addition of fake names to the rolls.
Gandhi reiterated that nearly 6,000 names had been removed from the voters' list in Karnataka's Aland Assembly constituency. He also referred to alleged irregularities in Mahadevpura, another constituency in the state, where he had earlier flagged the presence of "fraud votes."
"Across elections, groups of people have been systematically targeting voters for deletion across India - particularly Dalits, OBCs, Adivasis, minorities, and others who support the Opposition. We had heard about this many times, but now we have 100% proof. I will not make any statement on this stage without complete evidence. I love my country, the Constitution, and the democratic process, and I am working to protect them," he said.
Sharing details of the alleged fraud in Aland, Gandhi claimed that 6,018 votes had been removed using software and by impersonating genuine voters. "We don't know the total number of votes deleted during the 2023 elections, but this case was exposed - as with most crimes - by coincidence. A Booth Level Officer noticed that her uncle's name had been deleted from the list," he said.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, have repeatedly accused the ECI of colluding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to delete or add names in electoral rolls during various polls. Gandhi has cited instances in Maharashtra and in several Karnataka constituencies, including Mahadevpura, as examples of such malpractice.
Responding to the allegations, the Election Commission has asked Gandhi to submit an affidavit along with evidence. Following his remarks, the poll panel also held a press conference, addressing questions on the ongoing Special Intensive Revision in Bihar and other claims raised by the Opposition.
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