The Election Commission of India rebuffed Rahul Gandhi’s Haryana vote theft claims, questioning Congress’s silence during voter roll verification and asking whether the Leader of Opposition supports or opposes the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to remove fake voters.
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NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has strongly denied Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of large-scale vote theft in the 2024 Haryana Assembly Elections, asserting that the accusations are “baseless” and unsupported by evidence.
The poll body countered Gandhi’s claims by questioning the Congress party’s inaction during electoral roll verification and the absence of any formal appeals against the rolls, which were shared with all political parties as per law.
ECI Responds to Rahul Gandhi’s Haryana Election Allegations
Rahul Gandhi had accused the Election Commission and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of manipulating voter lists in Haryana to favor the BJP. He claimed that over 25 lakh votes were “stolen”, citing alleged 5.21 lakh duplicate voters, 93,174 invalid voters, and 19.26 lakh bulk voters.
Responding to the charges, Election Commission officials clarified that:
- Not a single appeal was filed by Congress against the published electoral rolls.
- Only 22 election petitions are pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court across 90 Assembly seats.
- Congress polling agents did not raise any objections at polling stations during the voting process.
“What were the polling agents of Congress doing in the polling stations? They are supposed to object if an elector has already voted or if the identity is in doubt,”
EC officials stated.
The poll body further asked why Congress Booth Level Agents (BLAs) did not raise any objections or appeals during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The ECI emphasized that the SIR process aims to remove duplicate, dead, or shifted voters while verifying citizenship.
“Is Rahul Gandhi supporting the SIR which removes fake and duplicate voters, or is he opposing it?”
EC sources asked, adding that the Congress’s lack of engagement during the revision undermines its current claims.
The Commission also questioned how Rahul Gandhi could assert that the so-called duplicate voters had supported the BJP.
“The ballots are secret. How does he know who they voted for?”
officials asked.
Addressing Gandhi’s claim that voters listed under “House Number Zero” were linked to BJP workers, the ECI explained that these entries represent households where local panchayats or municipalities have not yet assigned house numbers.
The Commission added that the video clip of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar shared by Gandhi was “incomplete and misleading.”
Extending its response to Gandhi’s warning that similar “vote theft” could occur in Bihar, the ECI pointed out that Congress did not file a single appeal during the Special Intensive Revision exercise in the state conducted between August 1 and October 15, 2025.
Controversy Over Special Intensive Revision (SIR)
The SIR exercise, currently underway in nine states and three Union Territories, aims to update and verify the voter rolls of over 51 crore electors. However, the process has sparked political controversy, with several opposition parties alleging that it is being used to suppress genuine voters.
- In Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and the ruling DMK have challenged the SIR in the Supreme Court, calling it “politically motivated.”
- In West Bengal, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a mass protest in Kolkata, labeling the SIR as “silent, invisible rigging” orchestrated by the BJP.
Rahul Gandhi’s Allegations Against ECI and BJP
Rahul Gandhi accused the Election Commission and the BJP of rigging the Haryana polls, claiming massive voter list manipulation, including 5.21 lakh duplicates, 93,174 invalid, and 19.26 lakh bulk voters. He alleged that one in every eight voters was fake, calling it “unprecedented.”
Gandhi also cited a bizarre case of a “Brazilian model” allegedly voting 22 times under different names, demanding a forensic audit of voter data. The BJP dismissed the charges as baseless political drama.
