The Congress party has accused the Election Commission (EC) of a double standard, criticizing its swift action against Rahul Gandhi while remaining silent on similar allegations made by BJP MP Anurag Thakur.
The controversy centers on claims of “fake voters” on the electoral rolls used in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Congress’s media head, Pawan Khera, pointed out that the EC had issued notices to Rahul Gandhi within hours of his claim that there were over 1 lakh bogus voters in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment. In contrast, Khera noted, no action had been taken against Thakur, who alleged that six Lok Sabha constituencies held by prominent Opposition leaders had “fake” voters with Muslim names.
The Congress asserted that Thakur’s claims effectively prove the 2024 elections were fought on a “fake voters’ list” and demanded that the results be nullified. Khera also questioned how Thakur obtained the electoral data for six constituencies in just six days, a task that took the Congress six months for a single constituency. He called for the EC to provide the electronic voters’ list to the Congress to allow them to investigate further.
Former Chief Election Commissioner O.P. Rawat supported the Congress’s position, stating that the rule cited in the notices sent to Rahul Gandhi only applies to draft electoral rolls, not the final lists used for an election. He also noted that it is standard practice for the EC to investigate allegations from senior political figures without a formal complaint. However, neither the EC nor the Chief Electoral Officers in the states mentioned by Thakur have publicly responded to his allegations.
An unnamed EC source commented that anyone with proof of a person voting twice should share it with the commission via a written affidavit, rather than using phrases like “vote chori” (vote theft) which undermine the integrity of both voters and election officials.
