Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, recently accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of shielding those he calls “vote chors”—individuals supposedly undermining India’s democracy. This statement was made during a press conference at Congress’ Indira Bhawan headquarters, shedding light on serious concerns regarding electoral integrity.
Gandhi’s remarks followed claims that votes of Congress supporters were being systematically deleted in the Karnataka Assembly constituency, specifically Aland, ahead of the upcoming elections. He demanded that the Election Commission halt these actions and provide requested information to the Karnataka CID within a week.
Allegations of Vote Deletion in Karnataka
On Thursday, Gandhi presented alarming statistics, alleging that an attempt was made to delete more than 6,000 votes from Aland. He emphasized that this incident reflects a broader issue whereby millions of voters are potentially targeted for deletion across the nation. “Someone has been systematically targeting millions of voters for deletion across India,” he asserted.
During the conference, he recounted how a local booth-level officer stumbled upon the deletion of her uncle’s vote, prompting her to question the process. This resulted in the discovery that unauthorized individuals had hijacked the system to delete votes. Gandhi underscored that 6,018 applications for vote deletions were filed, many of which were processed through mobile numbers linked to regions outside Karnataka.
Concerns Over Voter Manipulation
Moreover, the Congress leader highlighted similar fraudulent activities in Maharashtra’s Rajura constituency, where voters were allegedly added through automated software manipulation. “I am going to make a serious claim about Gyanesh Kumar. The CEC must take responsibility,” he declared.
Calling attention to the culpability of the Election Commission, he stated: “They know who is performing these deletions,” and urged young citizens of India to recognize the significance of these issues. Gandhi’s strong language serves to engage and alarm a younger demographic that cares about the future integrity of elections in India.
Investigative Concerns and Transparency Demands
Pointing out the ongoing investigation in Karnataka, Gandhi revealed that the CID has made several requests to the Election Commission over the past year and a half. These requests aimed to uncover basic information such as the origin IP addresses of the deletion applications and necessary OTP trails. According to Gandhi, a lack of transparency makes it difficult to track down the exact individuals responsible for these actions.
“The Election Commission has not provided this information, which could uncover the operation’s masterminds. This leads to the alarming conclusion that they are protecting the very individuals undermining our democracy,” Gandhi said passionately.
Calls for Accountability in Electoral Processes
Gandhi concluded his statements by emphasizing the need for accountability within the electoral processes in India. He noted that in previous claims related to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, over a hundred thousand votes were reportedly compromised due to manipulation, reiterating that “vote chori” poses a severe threat to democracy.
As this situation unfolds, the spotlight is on the Election Commission to address these undeniable accusations seriously. With so much at stake, the call for transparent and fair elections has never been more critical.
In light of this unfolding narrative, many Indian citizens are left with a haunting question: How can they trust the electoral process if the foundational integrity of voting is being systematically challenged?
