A political storm has erupted in India as accusations of "vote theft" have surfaced, stirring a fierce debate amongst opposition parties who claim the country’s election body has favored the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the recently held 2024 general elections.
The controversy came to a head on Tuesday when Parliament was suspended after opposition MPs insisted on discussing the legitimacy of India’s electoral mechanism. The day before, prominent opposition figures, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, faced detention by police in Delhi while attempting to march to the Election Commission of India's (ECI) headquarters. The allegations first emerged from Gandhi during a press conference on August 7, generating substantial support from fellow lawmakers. Both the Election Commission and the BJP have steadfastly denied the controversies raised.
What exactly has been alleged by Rahul Gandhi? The Congress leader claims substantial voter manipulation occurred during the elections, presenting detailed voter data sourced from the electoral body, which is disputed by the ECI and the ruling BJP.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi achieved a notable third term, his alliance failed to secure the expected landslide majority. The voter turnout for these elections was approximately 66%, comprising nearly a billion registered participants, a staggering one in eight individuals worldwide. Gandhi alleged significant discrepancies in voter registration in Mahadevapura, a segment of the Bangalore Central constituency, claiming over 100,000 entries were fraudulent, including duplicates, false addresses, and bulk registrations at the same location.
Citing instances where individuals reportedly voted multiple times, Gandhi also alleged inappropriate deletion of CCTV footage from polling stations, highlighting one case where 80 individuals registered at a single address in Mahadevapura. He contends that these irregularities cost his party at least 48 parliamentary seats. The Congress had a modest win of 99 seats out of the 543 total, contrasting sharply with the BJP's 240.
In response to these claims, Gandhi has urged the ECI to publish digital voter rolls for public auditing. However, the BBC has not independently verified his allegations, which the ECI quickly dismissed on the social media platform X, labelling them as "absurd" and insisting Gandhi retract his statements or formally apologize. Furthermore, the Karnataka branch of the ECI countered that the Congress party had failed to raise formal objections during the electoral roll revision process prior to the elections.
In a show of political backing, BJP leaders denounced the allegations vehemently. Federal Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan stated that the chaos initiated by Gandhi was harmful to democracy, while Federal Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan accused the opposition of undermining democratic integrity and damaging constitutional credibility.
The political ramifications of Gandhi's claims are considerable, particularly given ongoing tensions surrounding a recent voter roll revision in Bihar state where elections are scheduled for November. The recently concluded Special Intensive Revision (SIR) aimed to validate a total of 78.9 million voters but faced criticisms for potentially disenfranchising minorities and migrants.
Many voters have reported misleading photographs or errors in the draft voter rolls. The Supreme Court is currently reviewing complaints related to the SIR, prompting petitioners to demand transparency concerning the removal of approximately 6.5 million names from the rolls. The ECI claims these deletions were legitimate, involving deceased individuals, duplicate registrations, and those who had migrated.
While corrections can still be made until September 1, the court acknowledged a breakdown in public trust appears prevalent, and it warned that intervention would be necessary if substantial voter exclusion was proven. Rahul Gandhi intensified his critique on August 12, alleging a systematic "vote theft" campaign unfolding at the national level, citing sensational examples to bolster his claims.
