In a bold move, Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has once again raised serious concerns over the election process. On Thursday, he laid bare to the media the details of an investigation conducted by the party to unearth fake voters. He stressed that voting is the cornerstone of the constitution, but questioned whether legitimate voters have their rightful say or if fraudulent voters are infiltrating the lists.
‘Congress Investigates to Uncover Evidence’
Gandhi recalled the times when ballots were cast in a single day nationwide, contrasting it with the current multi-phase polling spread over months in large states like Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra due to Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). He highlighted that within five months in Maharashtra alone, over five million new voters registered. He pointed out the anomaly where they win at coalition levels in Lok Sabha but falter in assembly elections, where record numbers of new voters cast ballots.
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The Congress party began suspecting irregularities post the Maharashtra assembly elections, lacking initial evidence. They probed where the staggering one crore new voters in Maharashtra emerged from, questioning the disparity between Lok Sabha and assembly election results, pressing the Election Commission for answers.
‘EC Withheld Digital Voter List’
Gandhi disclosed their hurdle in obtaining the digital voter list from the Election Commission, which they were reluctant to provide. The assertion that voting centers’ CCTV footage was deleted by the commission added to their astonishment, especially when in this digital era, a small drive could store extensive data.
Launching their probe in Karnataka first, they focused on seven seats where they faced defeats, despite surveys predicting wins. Their strategy zeroed in on one seat, prominently examining the anomalies.
Source: aajtak
‘Vote Theft in Mahadevapura’
He recounted their scrutiny of Bengaluru Central's Mahadevapura assembly constituency. The data they used was provided by the Election Commission for the 2024 polls. He pointed out a significant voter count disparity that evidenced BJP’s win by 32,707 votes, despite a close contest.
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The focus on Mahadevapura revealed a massive win margin for BJP by 114,046 votes, while they consistently lost elsewhere, questioning the legitimacy behind this seat's results that effectively turned the tide in favor of BJP’s Lok Sabha success.
Pinpointing the Vote Theft
Rahul highlighted five methods of vote theft in his findings. They discovered over 100,250 illicit votes, unraveling 11,000+ duplicate voters, 40,000+ with fake addresses, 10,000+ bulk voters at a single address, 4,000 with fake photos, and 33,000+ exploiting Form 6.
Source: aajtak
It was a startling discovery to find a single voter registered at four different booths, like Aditya Shrivastava with identical photos and addresses appearing across Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Uttar Pradesh. Rahul narrated similar instances including two votes registered for a person named Vishal Singh in Karnataka and another in Varanasi. He claimed these examples reflect thousands of such anomalies.
False Addresses Mar Voter Records
Gandhi asserted that numerous voter ID cards lacked either legitimate or accurate details. Many addresses couldn't be verified, often discovering no corresponding resident. He mentioned 40,000 voters with deceiving addresses, signaling systemic flaws.
Rahul Gandhi emphasized that Narendra Modi became Prime Minister with a slender 25-seat margin in Lok Sabha, and with such widespread vote theft identified, he questioned the broader electoral integrity. He called upon India’s youth and voters to reflect on the deceit involved, encouraging vigilance for the future.
