NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday reiterated its demand that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi either sign a formal declaration supporting his “vote theft” allegations or apologise to the country, describing the claims as “false” and “absurd.”
“Rahul Gandhi should either give a declaration as per the rules, or apologise to the country for his false allegations,” an official said, as per news agency PTI.
The development comes a day after Gandhi and the poll body exchanged sharp remarks over his claims that voter lists in at least three states had been manipulated.
Following his remarks, the chief electoral officers of Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Haryana had asked Gandhi to provide names of individuals he alleged were wrongfully included or excluded from electoral rolls, along with a signed declaration as per the Conduct of Election Rules.
Gandhi, however, has said he will not sign the declaration, asserting that he has already taken an oath to uphold the Constitution as a Member of Parliament.
The ECI’s renewed call follows Gandhi’s press conference on Thursday in which he alleged that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were “choreographed” to benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Citing internal Congress analysis, Gandhi said his party expected to win 16 seats in Karnataka but secured nine. He alleged “vote chori” (vote theft) of 100,250 votes in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment through methods including duplicate entries, fake addresses, and bulk voter registrations.
According to news agency ANI, ECI sources said, “If Rahul 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. Therefore, he has two options: Either sign the declaration or apologise to the Nation for raising absurd allegations against ECI”.
The sources also noted that the Congress-led Karnataka government itself relies on the electoral rolls for its caste census policy.
Karnataka minister G Parameshwara said the state Congress unit will file a complaint with the ECI regarding alleged voter list irregularities. “The Election Commission can say whatever it wants, but we will provide them according to the rules of the commission. There is no need for Rahul Gandhi to provide documents… There is a difference in the voter list, which means the commission should accept it,” he said, as per ANI.
The BJP also called on Gandhi to submit a formal complaint or resign from the Lok Sabha “on moral grounds” if he does not have faith in the Election Commission. “When they lose elections, they have to blame someone; sometimes they blame EVMs, sometimes VVPAT, sometimes the Election Commission, and sometimes they abuse the public and make false allegations without facts,” BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, according to ANI.
Separately, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)-SCP chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday backed Gandhi’s concerns, recalling that before the Maharashtra Assembly elections, two people approached him claiming they could guarantee victory in 160 out of 288 seats.
Pawar further claimed that he arranged for these individuals to meet Gandhi, but both leaders declined to entertain the offer. “We should not pay attention to this; this is not our path,” Pawar said.
“Rahul Gandhi should either give a declaration as per the rules, or apologise to the country for his false allegations,” an official said, as per news agency PTI.
The development comes a day after Gandhi and the poll body exchanged sharp remarks over his claims that voter lists in at least three states had been manipulated.
Following his remarks, the chief electoral officers of Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Haryana had asked Gandhi to provide names of individuals he alleged were wrongfully included or excluded from electoral rolls, along with a signed declaration as per the Conduct of Election Rules.
Gandhi, however, has said he will not sign the declaration, asserting that he has already taken an oath to uphold the Constitution as a Member of Parliament.
The ECI’s renewed call follows Gandhi’s press conference on Thursday in which he alleged that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were “choreographed” to benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Citing internal Congress analysis, Gandhi said his party expected to win 16 seats in Karnataka but secured nine. He alleged “vote chori” (vote theft) of 100,250 votes in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment through methods including duplicate entries, fake addresses, and bulk voter registrations.
According to news agency ANI, ECI sources said, “If Rahul 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. Therefore, he has two options: Either sign the declaration or apologise to the Nation for raising absurd allegations against ECI”.
The sources also noted that the Congress-led Karnataka government itself relies on the electoral rolls for its caste census policy.
Karnataka minister G Parameshwara said the state Congress unit will file a complaint with the ECI regarding alleged voter list irregularities. “The Election Commission can say whatever it wants, but we will provide them according to the rules of the commission. There is no need for Rahul Gandhi to provide documents… There is a difference in the voter list, which means the commission should accept it,” he said, as per ANI.
The BJP also called on Gandhi to submit a formal complaint or resign from the Lok Sabha “on moral grounds” if he does not have faith in the Election Commission. “When they lose elections, they have to blame someone; sometimes they blame EVMs, sometimes VVPAT, sometimes the Election Commission, and sometimes they abuse the public and make false allegations without facts,” BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, according to ANI.
Separately, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)-SCP chief Sharad Pawar on Saturday backed Gandhi’s concerns, recalling that before the Maharashtra Assembly elections, two people approached him claiming they could guarantee victory in 160 out of 288 seats.
Pawar further claimed that he arranged for these individuals to meet Gandhi, but both leaders declined to entertain the offer. “We should not pay attention to this; this is not our path,” Pawar said.
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