New Delhi, 24 September (H.S.): Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of failing to prevent alleged irregularities in electoral rolls and the election process and demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Gandhi alleged that “vote theft” posed a serious threat to India’s democratic system and called for an investigation into alleged irregularities in the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.

Speaking at a press conference at the Congress headquarters in New Delhi on Thursday, Gandhi said anti-incumbency was an established and fundamental force in Indian politics that had affected governments and political leaders over the decades. Referring to the 1971 Bangladesh war, he cited the popularity enjoyed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the anti-incumbency sentiment that emerged subsequently.

The Congress leader questioned why, despite anti-incumbency having affected the Congress, regional parties and other political leaders in the past, a similar trend had allegedly not been evident against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in recent elections. He referred to elections in Haryana, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat and said the change needed to be examined. Gandhi linked the issue to the electoral process, asserting that the vote was the foundation of democracy and that the Election Commission was responsible for protecting voters’ rights.

Gandhi also raised allegations concerning the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. He claimed that irregularities had occurred in the addition and deletion of voters’ names and alleged that changes to electoral rolls had taken place even before the SIR exercise began. Referring to Maharashtra and West Bengal, he cited figures concerning the deletion and subsequent restoration of voters’ names and questioned which version of the electoral rolls should be regarded as authoritative.

He said the Election Commission had a responsibility to ensure the integrity of electoral rolls but alleged that it had failed to discharge that responsibility. Gandhi further claimed that different individuals had varying levels of access to the voter-list modification system, which, according to him, created scope for alleged manipulation. He said the Congress had repeatedly called for comprehensive reforms within the Election Commission.

Gandhi also referred to objections reportedly raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi over decisions concerning electoral-roll processes. Reports have said the two commissioners raised objections on multiple occasions over a period of 10 months. The Election Commission has maintained that its decisions, including those concerning the SIR, have legal backing and were taken in accordance with the established process.

Gandhi demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and said that if he possessed significant information concerning the electoral process, he should make it public. He reiterated his allegations that the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were affected by what he described as widespread irregularities and said he had information to support his claims.

He called for an investigation into the alleged irregularities and said opposition parties would work together to protect voters’ rights and the integrity of the electoral process.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar