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New Indian Express
a day ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Grounds of Kamal Nath verdict the poll body cites in fight against Rahul Gandhi
NEW DELHI: A day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of colluding with the ruling BJP for 'stealing' over one lakh votes in a seat during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka, the poll body alleged that he was re-cycling an old accusation that was thrown out by the Supreme Court in 2018. Rahul explained that poll roll doctoring is essentially done in five ways — by enrolling duplicate voters, inserting fake and invalid addresses, bulk voters at one address, invalid photos, and the misuse of Form 6 that is used to add new voters. Similar allegations of inflating the voter list in Madhya Pradesh ahead of the 2018 assembly polls were made by the then state Congress president Kamal Nath. In his petition before the Supreme Court, Kamal Nath cited data from a private website to allege a 40% jump in the number of voters in Madhya Pradesh in a decade. When those born in 1991-2001 and attained the age of 18 years between 2008-2018 are taken into account, the increase in the number of voters in the state as per the prevailing trend ought to have been 1,18,18,290. However, the actual jump in the total number of new voters during 2008-2018 was 1,45,13,404, which works out to over 40%. The addition of 26.95 lakh new votes in Madhya Pradesh was inconceivable, he argued. Besides, as many as 36 voters had the same face in the poll rolls, Kamal Nath charged. Rahul similarly alleged that the name of Aditya Srivastava was present in the electoral rolls of three different states. But the ECI in its pushback said the error was rectified months ago. Kamal Nath wrote to the ECI on June 3, 2018 pointing to the humongous errors in the voter list and demanding that it rectify them immediately. The poll body on July 16, 2018 wrote to the All India Congress Committee (AICC) stating that the allegations made by Kamal Nath were not substantiated. It, however, admitted that there were duplicate and fake entries, which had been weeded out. In the process, 24 lakh names were dropped from the voter list published in January 2018. It also admitted that 2,37,234 photo entries were suspicious/ unclear/ blank. In his petition, Kamal Nath essentially sought two reliefs: (a) Directions for conducting random verification of the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) for 10% of the votes; and (b) soft copies of the draft electoral rolls in text format to all political parties to let them use online tools to identify duplicate or fake voters.
New Indian Express
3 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
'New wine in old bottle': EC says Rahul Gandhi is 'recycling' old allegations on issue dismissed by apex court
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Friday accused Rahul Gandhi of re-cycling old allegations of poll irregularities which were settled by the Supreme Court, and asked the Congress leader to give a written declaration on his claims on wrongful entries in voters' list or tender an apology. Sources in the poll authority dubbed Gandhi's allegations on vote theft in at least three states as a "tired script" and likened it to "new wine in an old bottle." The sources said the issue, first raised by then Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath in 2018, was settled by the apex court. The Election Commission also dismissed Gandhi's claims on non-functioning websites. "No issues with Election Commission of India's website. Functioning seamlessly since its launch," the poll authority said in a statement. The Commission said the primary site/link for E-Roll download for all states has been working without any issues since it was launched, and continues to be operational currently as well. The Congress leader hit back, asserting that he has already taken oath in Parliament to uphold the Constitution, indicating that there was no need for him to give a signed declaration to the poll authority on his claims. The sources said in 2018, Congress leaders tried to mislead the Supreme Court by producing documents from a private website to demonstrate that there were mistakes in electoral rolls, contending that the same face was shown for as many as 36 voters. The defects flagged by the Congress leaders were already rectified and the copy of the same was supplied to the party, the sources said, adding that this ground was made to seek the searchable PDF format for electoral rolls. The top court refused to accept the prayer of Kamal Nath. The sources said the Congress leaders were aware that the same trick cannot be repeated in the court, so they tried to mislead people by claiming irregularities in electoral rolls, contending that the same names were occurring at different places. The sources said the name of Aditya Srivastava, which was alleged to be in the electoral rolls of three different states, was rectified months ago. They said instead of availing the legal process, Gandhi tried to sensationalise the issue by making baseless claims before the media. As Gandhi continued with his attack on the EC alleging vote theft in at least three states, the poll panel said if he believes in his analysis and feels that his allegations against it are true, he should have "no problem" in signing a declaration under electoral rules and submit the names wrongfully added or removed from the voters' list. However, if Gandhi does not sign the declaration, it would mean that he does not believe in his analysis and resultant conclusions and "absurd allegations." In which case he should apologise to the nation, the sources said. The chief electoral officers of three states on Thursday asked Gandhi to share the names of electors he claimed were either included or excluded wrongfully from the voter lists along with a signed declaration for the poll authorities to initiate "necessary proceedings" in the matter. In a fact check post on X, the Election Commission said it has not removed voters' list from the websites of the state chief electoral officers and anybody can download the electoral rolls. It was responding to a user's post alleging that e-voter rolls for many states were removed after Thursday's press conference by Gandhi. Addressing a Vote Adhikar rally in Bengaluru on Friday, Gandhi said he has already taken oath in Parliament to uphold the Constitution. "The EC asks me to file an affidavit and give information under oath. I have taken an oath inside the Parliament holding the Constitution. Today when people are questioning the Election Commission based on the data I released, the EC has shut its website," he alleged. At a media briefing on Thursday, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed that there was "vote chori" of 1,00,250 votes in a Karnataka constituency, with 11,965 duplicate voters in the segment, 40,009 voters with fake and invalid addresses, 10,452 bulk voters or single address voters, 4,132 voters with invalid photos, and 33,692 voters misusing Form 6 of new voters.
Mint
3 days ago
- Politics
- Mint
EC cites Kamal Nath judgment to counter Rahul Gandhi's 'vote chori' charges. What was the 2018 SC order?
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi has drawn sharp criticism from the Election Commission over allegations of irregularities in India's electoral rolls. The Congress leader, speaking at a recent press conference on Thursday, alleged that multiple entries and duplications in the voter list compromise the integrity of the electoral process. The Election Commission of India has rejected Gandhi's claims and disregarded established legal procedures. On Friday, the Election Commission cited "The Kamal Nath judgement" that, it said, gives a settled position to the machine-readable document. The poll panel stated that repeatedly raising the same issues shows that Rahul Gandhi has no respect for the Supreme Court of India's decisions. "Law provides a specific procedure for both making objections to the roll and for appealing. Instead of availing the legal processes, he tried to sensationalise the issue by making baseless claims in the media," the poll panel sources said. The ECI is referring to allegations made in 2018 by then Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Kamal Nath that were rejected by the Supreme Court reliability of ECI's voter databases. In 2018, Kamal Nath had approached the Supreme Court claiming that the electoral rolls in Madhya Pradesh showed multiple entries of the same faces, up to 36 times, based on data sourced from a private website. The court, however, found no merit in the claim, particularly after the Election Commission of India (ECI) demonstrated that the supposed discrepancies had already been rectified months prior to the petition. The court refused to grant the relief sought, including the demand for searchable PDF formats of electoral rolls. Rahul Gandhi alleged that similar discrepancies still exist, including multiple entries of the same name across different states. One example he cited was a voter named Aditya Srivastava, allegedly listed in three different State rolls. However, ECI sources assertively said that this error had been corrected months ago, and the updated rolls had been duly published. The poll panel said it is a settled proposition that if law requires a certain thing to happen in a certain manner, then it should be done in that manner only and not in any other manner. "Therefore, if Rahul Gandhi believes in his analysis and believes that his allegations against ECI are true, he should have respect for law and sign the Declaration or Apologise to the Nation for raising absurd allegations against ECI," is said. Kamal Nath had sought directions from the Supreme Court for the Election Commission to conduct VVPAT verification in at least 10 per cent randomly selected polling stations and to publish the draft voter list in 'text format' ahead of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections in November 2018. In his petition, Kamal Nath said his party identified 60 lakh duplicate voters in the electoral rolls in Madhya Pradesh. Kamal Nath had demanded that draft electoral rolls be published in word format in place of the current practice of having them on the website of the Chief Electoral Officers to help weed out the fake names. The SC bench of Justices AK Sikri and Ashok Bhushan found force in the Election Commission's argument that the Election Manual provides for publishing the draft electoral roll in 'text mode'. Kamal Nath cannot claim as a right that the draft electoral roll should be placed on the website in a 'searchable mode,' the court said. 'It is for the ECI to decide the format in which the draft electoral roll is to be published,' Justice Sikri, who wrote the judgment, said.
India Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Apologise or sign declaration: Poll body to Rahul Gandhi over voter theft charge
The Election Commission of India on Friday doubled down on its attack on Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, daring the Congress MP to either sign the poll body's declaration form—mandated for raising objections to the electoral roll—or "apologise to the nation for his absurd allegations," according to news agency the Congress leader continued his tirade against the Election Commission, alleging voter theft in at least three states, the poll body rejected claims that its websites in various states were down and the electoral rolls available on it were Rahul Gandhi's claims of more than a lakh "voter theft" in the Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha seat during the 2024 General Elections on Thursday, the poll body asked the Congress MP to sign the declaration by the Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka or tender an apology for his "absurd" claims. However, instead of signing the poll body's declaration, Rahul Gandhi today said that he has already taken an oath of the Constitution in Parliament."The EC asks me to file an affidavit and give information under oath. I have taken oath inside the Parliament holding the Constitution. Today when the people are questioning the Election Commission based on data I released, the EC has shut its website," the senior Congress leader said addressing a 'Vote Adhikar' rally in Bengaluru earlier sharply to Rahul Gandhi's claims today, the poll body said the Kamal Nath judgment provides a precedent with respect to the machine-readable document. In 2018, Congress leader Kamal Nath approached the top court, claiming that the same faces have cropped up in Madhya Pradesh's electoral role multiple times. However, the Election Commission successfully argued before the Supreme Court that the highlighted discrepancies were already removed months before the chief electoral officers of three states on Thursday asked Gandhi to share the names of electors he claimed were either included or excluded wrongfully from the voter lists along with a signed declaration for the poll authorities to initiate "necessary proceedings" in the a fact-check post on X, the Election Commission said it has not removed voters list from the websites of the state chief electoral officers and anybody can download the electoral rolls. It was responding to a user's post alleging that e-voter rolls for many states were removed after Thursday's press conference by Gandhi.- EndsInputs from PTI and ANIMust Watch
News18
3 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Rahul Gandhi re-cycling old allegations on issue dismissed by apex court: EC
New Delhi, Aug 8 (PTI) The Election Commission on Friday accused Rahul Gandhi of re-cycling old allegations of poll irregularities which were settled by the Supreme Court, and asked the Congress leader to give a written declaration on his claims on wrongful entries in voters' list or tender an apology. Sources in the poll authority dubbed Gandhi's allegations on vote theft in at least three states as a 'tired script" and likened it to 'new wine in an old bottle". The sources said the issue, first raised by then Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath in 2018, was settled by the apex court. The Election Commission also dismissed Gandhi's claims on non-functioning websites. 'No issues with Election Commission of India's website. Functioning seamlessly since its launch," the poll authority said in a statement. The Commission said the primary site/link for E-Roll download for all states has been working without any issues since it was launched, and continues to be operational currently as well. The Congress leader hit back, asserting that he has already taken oath in Parliament to uphold the Constitution, indicating that there was no need for him to give a signed declaration to the poll authority on his claims. The sources said in 2018, Congress leaders tried to mislead the Supreme Court by producing documents from a private website to demonstrate that there were mistakes in electoral rolls, contending that the same face was shown for as many as 36 voters. The defects flagged by the Congress leaders were already rectified and the copy of the same was supplied to the party, the sources said, adding that this ground was made to seek the searchable PDF format for electoral rolls. The top court refused to accept the prayer of Kamal Nath. The sources said the Congress leaders were aware that the same trick cannot be repeated in the court, so they tried to mislead people by claiming irregularities in electoral rolls, contending that the same names were occurring at different places. The sources said the name of Aditya Srivastava, which was alleged to be in the electoral rolls of three different states, was rectified months ago. They said instead of availing the legal process, Gandhi tried to sensationalise the issue by making baseless claims before the media. As Gandhi continued with his attack on the EC alleging vote theft in at least three states, the poll panel said if he believes in his analysis and feels that his allegations against it are true, he should have 'no problem" in signing a declaration under electoral rules and submit the names wrongfully added or removed from the voters' list. However, if Gandhi does not sign the declaration, it would mean that he does not believe in his analysis and resultant conclusions and 'absurd allegations". In which case he should apologise to the nation, the sources said. The chief electoral officers of three states on Thursday asked Gandhi to share the names of electors he claimed were either included or excluded wrongfully from the voter lists along with a signed declaration for the poll authorities to initiate 'necessary proceedings" in the matter. In a fact check post on X, the Election Commission said it has not removed voters' list from the websites of the state chief electoral officers and anybody can download the electoral rolls. It was responding to a user's post alleging that e-voter rolls for many states were removed after Thursday's press conference by Gandhi. Addressing a Vote Adhikar rally in Bengaluru on Friday, Gandhi said he has already taken oath in Parliament to uphold the Constitution. 'The EC asks me to file an affidavit and give information under oath. I have taken an oath inside the Parliament holding the Constitution. Today when people are questioning the Election Commission based on the data I released, the EC has shut its website," he alleged. At a media briefing on Thursday, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha claimed that there was 'vote chori" of 1,00,250 votes in a Karnataka constituency, with 11,965 duplicate voters in the segment, 40,009 voters with fake and invalid addresses, 10,452 bulk voters or single address voters, 4,132 voters with invalid photos, and 33,692 voters misusing Form 6 of new voters. PTI NAB GJS ARI (This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - PTI) view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
