The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has stepped up its counter-offensive against Opposition allegations that elections in India are being manipulated and that the Election Commission is not functioning independently.
According to a Hindustan Times report, BJP leaders are concerned that the issue could gain wider public traction and trigger protests, prompting the party to intensify its outreach and defence of the poll panel. The Opposition allegations have been denied by both the Election Commission and the BJP.
The controversy has intensified following reports of differences within the three-member Election Commission over several decisions, including the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
An Indian Express investigation reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally recorded objections at least 14 times over a 10-month period to decisions and orders that they said were taken without their knowledge. The Election Commission, however, has maintained that its decisions, including those concerning SIR, were unanimous and that observations and differences are part of its deliberative process.
BJP cites election results to counter Opposition claims
Several BJP leaders told Hindustan Times that while there are concerns within the party about the possible wider impact of the issue, others believe the allegations have not translated into an electoral disadvantage.
The report cited the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, where the BJP-JD(U) alliance won 174 of the 243 seats, while the Opposition parties won 35 seats. A BJP leader involved in the Bihar campaign argued that despite Opposition campaigning against SIR, the issue did not lead to the kind of public mobilisation the party had feared.
The BJP is nevertheless seeking to address the issue before it develops into a broader political campaign, according to party leaders quoted by HT.
BJP defends Special Intensive Revision
The BJP has maintained that the SIR is a legal mechanism intended to identify ineligible entries and correct discrepancies in electoral rolls.
Party MP Sambit Patra cited data from constituencies in West Bengal to argue that voter deletions did not necessarily benefit the BJP. According to Patra, the Trinamool Congress won 13 of the 20 Assembly constituencies with the highest number of voter deletions, while the BJP won six and the Congress one.
Patra also cited Shamsherganj, Lalgola and Bhagawangola, where he said 74,775, 55,420 and 47,493 votes respectively had been deleted.
These figures have become part of the competing political arguments over SIR. Separate reporting has highlighted the number of voters affected by the revision process and the appeals filed against deletions, underscoring the continuing dispute over how the electoral-roll exercise should be assessed.
Opposition questions Election Commission’s functioning
Congress and Trinamool Congress leaders have accused the Election Commission of irregularities and questioned its independence. Their allegations have gained renewed attention following reports about the objections recorded by Sandhu and Joshi.
The Indian Express reported that the objections covered issues including voter registration, deletion and restoration of names, Form 6 applications and the centralised electoral-roll database.
The Election Commission has rejected the suggestion that such internal observations establish a lack of consensus in its decisions, saying that the Commission’s decisions have been unanimous.
BJP responds to Rahul Gandhi’s criticism
The BJP has also responded to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s criticism of the electoral process and his arguments concerning anti-incumbency.
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi rejected Gandhi’s assessment and argued that the political sentiment on the ground was not necessarily aligned with the Congress leader’s claims. His comments were part of the BJP’s broader response to Opposition criticism of the Election Commission and the electoral process.
Allies seek clarity from Election Commission
The BJP’s concerns are not limited to Opposition criticism. Hindustan Times reported that some allies, including the Lok Janshakti Party, have called for the Election Commission to address questions surrounding the issue.
The debate has therefore expanded beyond the immediate BJP-versus-Opposition confrontation, with questions being raised about the scale of the SIR exercise, voter-roll changes and the functioning of the Election Commission.
The BJP’s latest outreach is aimed at countering allegations of electoral manipulation while defending the legality of the SIR process. The controversy over the Election Commission’s internal deliberations and voter-roll revisions, however, remains an active political and institutional issue.
