Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has alleged irregularities in the recent Maharashtra elections. He stated that the Congress vote count did not decrease, but the BJP’s votes significantly increased. Rahul raised questions about the sudden addition of voters in the state and blamed the Election Commission for discrepancies.
Unusual Increase in Voters in Maharashtra
At a press conference in Delhi with NCP leader Supriya Sule and Shiv Sena (UBT), Rahul Gandhi said, “According to Maharashtra’s government, the state has 9.54 crore adults, but as per the Election Commission, there are 9.7 crore registered voters. How is it possible that voters are more than the adult population?”
Example from Kamthi Assembly Seat
Rahul pointed out the Kamthi assembly seat, where Congress received 1.36 lakh votes in the Lok Sabha elections and 1.34 lakh votes in the assembly polls. However, BJP’s votes increased from 1.19 lakh to 1.75 lakh. He alleged that new voters primarily supported the BJP and demanded detailed voter lists, claiming that many Dalit names were removed.
Demand for Voter List Transparency
Rahul Gandhi asked the Election Commission to provide voter lists, questioning why the Commission was not sharing them. He also criticized the process of appointing election commissioners, mentioning the exclusion of the Chief Justice of India from the appointment committee and the appointment of two new election commissioners before the Lok Sabha elections.
Sanjay Raut’s Remarks
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said, “If the Election Commission has any conscience left, it should answer Rahul Gandhi’s questions. The Commission is acting as a slave. These 39 lakh floating voters will now go to Bihar and then UP.”
Supriya Sule’s Demand for Re-elections
NCP leader Supriya Sule demanded re-elections in 11 constituencies. She said, “We want re-elections even in constituencies where our candidates won. We lost 11 seats due to confusion over election symbols. Even the ruling party acknowledged this issue. Despite repeated requests, no action was taken. We just want the Election Commission to act fairly.”
