BJP formed government in Haryana through vote theft, says Hooda

Former Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda has alleged that the BJP formed the government in Haryana through large-scale vote theft, as revealed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Addressing a press conference in Panipat today, Hooda said the revelations made by Rahul Gandhi had made it clear that the BJP “stole the mandate” and manipulated results in its favour.

“The Election Commission reported 61.19 per cent polling in Haryana on the day of voting on October 5. Then, on October 6, the figure rose to 65.65 per cent, and on October 7, it reached 67.9 per cent. How did the vote count increase in the sealed machines overnight?” Hooda questioned.

The senior Congress leader claimed that around 15 lakh votes were inflated during the Assembly polls, with an average of 15,000 extra votes per constituency. He said, “The sole responsibility of conducting elections in a transparent and fear-free manner lies with the Election Commission. It must answer Rahul Gandhi’s questions because he has exposed vote theft with evidence.”

Hooda alleged that the Election Commission’s impartiality was under doubt. “Until the Election Commission functions independently and impartially, democracy will remain under threat,” he asserted.

Reiterating his demand for a return to ballot paper voting, Hooda said, “This time too, Congress was leading in 73 seats in the ballot paper counting but fell behind in the EVM counting. The results of the last five elections show this has never happened before.”

Calling it an issue that goes beyond Haryana, he said, “This is not just about one state but about democracy itself. The BJP, in collusion with the Election Commission, has insulted the people’s mandate. The Congress will continue to raise its voice against this government theft.”

Rahul Gandhi, in a press conference on Wednesday, had accused the BJP of rigging elections in Haryana and claimed to have presented undeniable evidence. He alleged that 2.5 million fake votes were created in the state, including cases where a Brazilian model’s photograph was used to register multiple fake voters. “In one booth, 223 votes had the same photo; in another, 501 voters were listed under one household,” Gandhi had said.

Meanwhile, Congress workers held protests in Panipat and Sonepat, burning effigies of the Election Commission. In Panipat, the protest led by Ramesh Malik, district president (Rural), saw workers marching from Congress Bhawan to Samvidhan Chowk on NH-44, shouting slogans against the BJP and the Election Commission.

In Sonepat, Congress activists, led by Sanjeev Dahiya and Kamal Dewan, also held a protest march and burnt an effigy of the Commission at Subhash Chowk, demanding a fair probe into the alleged electoral malpractice.