Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has alleged that India’s Election Commission is “compromised” and claimed irregularities in the electoral process, while addressing members of the Indian diaspora in Boston.
Speaking at an event organised by the Overseas Congress, Gandhi said, “It’s very clear to us that the Election Commission is compromised, there is something very wrong with the system.”
He cited the Maharashtra elections to support his claim, alleging an abrupt and improbable addition of 65 lakh votes within two hours.
“More people voted in Maharashtra than the total number of people in Maharashtra, and this is a fact... the Election Commission gave us a figure in the evening around 5:30 p.m., and in two hours around 7:30 p.m., 65 lakh voters had voted, which is physically impossible...” he said.
The Election Commission, however, has dismissed similar allegations in the past. Sources within the poll body said claims of manipulated electoral rolls were “unfounded”.
Referring to the Special Summary Revision (SSR) published in early January 2025, EC sources pointed out that very few appeals had been filed under Sections 22, 23 and 24 of the Representation of the People Act in Maharashtra.
“Just 89 appeals were recorded in Maharashtra,” the source said, highlighting that over 13.8 million Booth Level Agents (BLAs) were involved in the SSR process countrywide. The sources noted that the final electoral rolls were accepted without significant objections.
The SSR is a routine pre-election exercise which includes updating the voter list by adding new voters and removing duplicates or names of the deceased.
Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, also spoke about India’s ties with the United States, expressing hope that the partnership between the two nations would continue.
“We have a partnership with the US, and hopefully we will continue to work together,” he said.
He thanked the attendees for upholding the values of the Congress party abroad. “You believe, you listen to other people, and you respect them. This is what runs in the Congress party and in our family.... Thank you for carrying the flag here, it's a very powerful thing to do...” he said.
Gandhi is scheduled to speak at Brown University on Monday as part of his US tour.
Also read: BJP MP mocks Rahul Gandhi's historical 'inaccuracy'
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