‘Bogus, Tarnishing EC’s Reputation’: Kiren Rijiju Slams Rahul Gandhi Over ‘Vote Theft’ Allegations
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju criticised Rahul Gandhi for making “bogus allegations” aimed at tarnishing the reputation of the Election Commission, terming the Congress party’s criticism politically motivated.
On Thursday, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju launched a sharp attack on Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of making “bogus claims” in an attempt to “tarnish” the image of the Election Commission of India (ECI).
While addressing the media, Rijiju described the Congress party’s allegations regarding voter list tampering as “politically driven”.
“The accusations made by Rahul Gandhi and his team are baseless and are targeting the Election Commission of India with the intention to tarnish its image,” Rijiju said.
Referring to past incidents, the senior BJP leader said the Congress party has used similar tactics in states where it faced defeat, such as Maharashtra and Haryana, and tends to malign constitutional bodies when outcomes are not in its favour.
“Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls has been carried out multiple times… In Maharashtra, the very same electoral rolls were praised when the Congress and its allies secured the majority in Lok Sabha. But after their poor performance in the assembly elections, the same rolls became questionable,” he added.
Rijiju also pointed out that the Congress had even criticised the Supreme Court after it condemned Rahul Gandhi’s claim that China had occupied a large portion of Indian land. He stated that a “true Indian” would not make such a remark.
“Just yesterday, they attacked the Supreme Court of India. The Congress leadership claimed that the Supreme Court cannot decide who is a genuine Indian… If the Supreme Court cannot regulate citizens’ conduct, then who can? Whenever it doesn’t suit them, they resort to attacking institutions,” he said.
What Did Rahul Gandhi Say?
Rijiju’s remarks came just hours after former Congress president Rahul Gandhi once again accused the Election Commission of working in collaboration with the BJP to manipulate the Lok Sabha elections.
Speaking at a press conference, Gandhi alleged that fake voters were being added to electoral rolls and tried to substantiate his claims by showcasing voter list data from Karnataka.
“Elections are being staged… Our internal surveys showed that we would win 16 seats in Karnataka; we ended up with nine. We then analysed seven seats where the results were unexpected. We chose one Lok Sabha constituency and decided to focus only on one Vidhan Sabha segment within it — Mahadevapura. Here’s the overall data. All figures are from the Election Commission’s 2024 records,” he said.
“In total, 6.26 lakh votes were polled in the Lok Sabha seat. The BJP secured 6,58,915 votes, winning by a margin of 32,707. But when we look into Mahadevapura, Congress polled 1,15,586 and BJP got 2,29,632. Congress won all other Vidhan Sabhas except this one. This one seat ensured their victory,” Gandhi claimed.
Reiterating his allegation of fake voter additions in the Maharashtra Assembly polls, he said that more voters were added in the five months leading up to the elections than in the previous five years combined.
No Discussion on SIR in Parliament
On Wednesday, the Centre rejected the Opposition’s demand for a debate on electoral roll revision in Bihar, stating that issues pending in court cannot be discussed in Parliament.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Rijiju underlined that the rules of the House do not permit debates on sub-judice matters. He also noted that the functioning of independent bodies like the Election Commission cannot be deliberated upon in Parliament.
“The government is completely open to discussions on any issue. However, such discussions must be in line with the Constitution and the rules governing the procedure and conduct of business in the Lok Sabha,” Rijiju said.
More than 10 petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the SIR, including those by opposition parties and the NGO ‘Association for Democratic Reforms’, the lead petitioner.
The opposition has been creating a stir in both houses of Parliament, demanding a discussion on SIR, which they allege is intended to disenfranchise a significant section of voters.
On Wednesday, several MPs belonging to the INDIA bloc held a demonstration inside the Parliament House complex, demanding the withdrawal of SIR and pressing for a debate on the issue in both Houses of Parliament.
