New Delhi : The Opposition is considering moving an impeachment notice against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged ‘vote chori’, sources said. Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi remarked, “We will be taking a decision very soon. Meanwhile, CEC Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday strongly countered allegations of electoral fraud levelled by the Congress and its leader Rahul Gandhi, defending the integrity of India’s voting process.
Without naming Gandhi, Kumar said the “PPT presentation presented by the Congress MP offered a wrong analysis” of voter data, and challenged the Leader of Opposition to either submit an affidavit supporting his claims within seven days or apologise to the nation. Rahul Gandhi had alleged irregularities such as duplicate entries, voters listed with house number zero, and dozens of voters registered to the same address. Kumar dismissed these claims as misrepresentations, citing examples from the Mahadevapura assembly segment in Karnataka’s Bangalore Central constituency, where the Congress had in fact won the 2023 state polls.
Rahul Gandhi had alleged irregularities such as duplicate entries, voters listed with house number zero, and dozens of voters registered to the same address. Kumar dismissed these claims as misrepresentations, citing examples from the Mahadevapura assembly segment in Karnataka’s Bangalore Central constituency, where the Congress had in fact won the 2023 state polls.
The Election Commission said allegations of duplicate voting had been mischaracterised. “It is one thing to have a voter’s name in more than one booth, and quite another to actually cast votes at two places,” Kumar explained, stressing that voting twice is a criminal offence. When asked for proof, no answer was given. The Election Commission wants to make it clear that it fearlessly stood, stands and will stand like a rock with all the voters of all religions and all sections of society, he said.
The CEC also addressed Opposition claims – raised by the Congress and ally RJD – that the SIR in Bihar was being rushed. He countered that the Representation of People Act mandates rectification of voter lists before every election. The outreach to over seven crore voters in Bihar began on June 24 and was largely completed by July 20, he said.
Citing precedent, Kumar noted that the last SIR in Bihar in 2003 was also conducted during the monsoon months, from July 14 to August 14. Appealing to all 12 political parties engaged in the revision through their booth-level agents (BLAs), Kumar urged them to flag errors before September 1, after which the draft list will be finalised.
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