‘Baseless, threatening allegations': EC hits back at Rahul Gandhi over Karnataka LS poll ‘cheating' remark

Mint

3 days ago

The Election Commission of India on Thursday did not waste any time in issuing fiery responses to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'cheating' allegations.
The Leader of Opposition had accused the poll panel of 'allowing cheating' in a constituency in Karnataka, adding that the Congress had 'concrete 100 per cent proof' of it.
Hours after the Congress leader made these remarks, ECI spokesperson on Thursday said that all electoral rolls are prepared transparently and copies were shared with recognised political parties.
'ECI is wondering as to why such baseless and threatening allegations are being made against CEC and that too now?' the poll panel asked.
The ECI spokesperson further said that as far as electoral rolls of Karnataka Lok Sabha 2024 are concerned, 'not a single appeal' was filed with the District Magistrate of the Chief Election Officer of Karnataka.
'⁠As far as conduct of Lok Sabha elections 2024 are concerned, out of 10 Election Petitions, not a single Election Petition was filed by any loosing INC candidate,' the ECI spokesperson added.
Rahul Gandhi severely criticised the poll body over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, warning the opposition would not let them get away with the exercise.
"I want to send a message to the Election Commission: If you think you are going to get away with it, if your officers think they are going to get away with it, you are mistaken. You are not going to get away with it, because we are going to come for you," the Lok Sabha LoP told reporters outside Parliament, just after the Lok Sabha was adjourned.
He accused the ECI of indulging in "cheating" during the voter list revision process in a Karnataka constituency.
Gandhi claimed to have "100 per cent" proof of the alleged manipulation, which involves adding and deleting voters, but hasn't presented any evidence yet, an ANI report said.
"Today, we have 100 per cent proof of the Election Commission allowing cheating in a seat in Karnataka. When we decide to show it to you, it is 100 per cent proof. We just looked at one constituency and we found this. I am absolutely convinced that, constituency after constituency, this is the drama. Thousands of new votes, aged 50 or 60, or 65 (are there) in one constituency. Then, voter deletion, people who are way above 18," he said.
The opposition parties, including Congress and the Samajwadi Party, have been protesting against the SIR exercise, alleging that it's an attempt to disenfranchise voters, particularly from marginalised communities. They claim that the process is being used to remove names from the voters' list, which could impact the outcome of upcoming assembly elections, the ANI report added.
Reiterating the claim that the poll panel is not fulfilling its duties, the Lok Sabha LoP added, "I said this yesterday too; this is a very serious matter. The Election Commission is not functioning as the Election Commission of India. Today they made some statement; this is complete nonsense. The fact of the matter is that the Election Commission is not doing its job."
Rahul Gandhi, along with other opposition MPs like Akhilesh Yadav and DMK MP TR Baalu, held protests in Parliament premises, raising slogans against the Election Commission and the BJP-led NDA government. The MPs held posters that read "SIR is the murder of democracy" and "Justice, Justice, Justice", demonstrating their strong opposition to the SIR exercise.
The poll body has defended the revision process, stating that it's aimed at ensuring the purity of elections by removing ineligible voters from the rolls. The commission has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court, affirming its authority to verify citizenship details in the interest of electoral integrity.