Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday launched a fresh attack on the Election Commission, accusing it of failing to act as an impartial guardian of elections and alleging that it was working in the BJP’s favour.
In a post on X, Kharge alleged that the BJP was attempting to weaken Indian democracy through what he called “vote theft.” He claimed that voters were being added in areas where the BJP stood to benefit and that votes were being divided or removed elsewhere.
Kharge raises Maharashtra voter count issue
Kharge claimed that Maharashtra saw a sudden increase of 39 lakh voters between the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. He further alleged that 2.07 crore voters have been excluded from the draft electoral roll prepared under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
He questioned whether the names of these voters were removed during the election process to benefit the BJP.
Bengal figures cited
Kharge also referred to the SIR exercise in Bengal, claiming that 91% of the names removed from the electoral rolls were restored after appeals.
He alleged that a similar process was now being carried out in Delhi. According to Kharge, the voter count was increased ahead of the Assembly elections, but 47.56 lakh names subsequently disappeared from the draft electoral roll.
He further claimed that notices were being prepared for another 33 lakh voters.
The Election Commission has previously maintained that electoral roll revisions are aimed at ensuring accurate voter lists and providing eligible voters an opportunity to raise objections or file claims.
