Rahul Gandhi Alleges Electoral Fraud in Maharashtra During US Visit
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Synopsis
During his visit to the US, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has raised alarms regarding the integrity of India's electoral system, alleging serious voter fraud and calling out the Election Commission of India for its compromised state. Addressing the Indian community in Boston, he highlighted questionable voter turnout figures from the Maharashtra Assembly elections.
Key Takeaways
- Rahul Gandhi claims discrepancies in Maharashtra's voter turnout.
- He accuses the Election Commission of India of being compromised.
- 65 lakh additional votes allegedly cast in a short time.
- Gandhi raises concerns about the independence of institutions.
- He is scheduled to speak at Brown University.
New Delhi, April 21 (NationPress) Congress leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, currently visiting the United States, has expressed grave concerns regarding the integrity of India’s electoral process, alleging voter fraud and accusing the Election Commission of India (ECI) of being compromised.
While addressing members of the Indian diaspora in Boston, Gandhi pointed to inconsistencies in the voter turnout statistics during the Maharashtra Assembly elections as a notable example.
“More individuals participated in the Maharashtra Assembly elections than the total number of registered voters,” Gandhi asserted.
“The Election Commission provided us with a figure at 5:30 PM. Then, between 5:30 and 7:30 PM, an astonishing 65 lakh additional votes were cast. It is physically impossible to manage that volume in just two hours.”
He further challenged the plausibility of such a vast number of votes being recorded in such a brief period.
“This scenario would imply that there were queues of voters extending into the early hours of the morning. We brought this issue to the Election Commission's attention, requested video evidence, but they declined to provide it. It was evident to us that the Commission was compromised.”
“There is something fundamentally wrong with the system. I have stated this on numerous occasions,” he reiterated, emphasizing that the decline of institutional independence is an increasing concern.
Rahul Gandhi is also set to speak at a gathering at Brown University during his time in the United States.
In last year's Maharashtra elections, Congress secured only 16 seats with a 12.42 percent vote share. Its alliance partners also performed poorly, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning 20 seats with nearly 10 percent vote share, while NCP (SP) could only win 10 seats with a mere 11.28 percent.
Conversely, the MahaYuti triumphed, with all three partners – BJP, NCP, and Shiv Sena – collectively obtaining 230 seats and forming the government with an absolute majority.
