Cong holds protest against ‘vote theft’

Under the “Vote Chor-Gaddi Chhor” campaign, the Congress workers, led by state president Rao Narendra Singh, organised a protest demonstration in Mahendragarh on Thursday.

Sirsa MP Kumar Selja and Rajya Sabha member Randeep Singh Surjewala were also present on the occasion.

Rao Narendra said Rahul Gandhi openly exposed how 25 lakh votes were “stolen” in the 2024 Haryana Assembly elections through unethical tactics such as tampering with EVMs, adding incorrect addresses and including foreign names in the voter list. He added that this amounted to a “murder of democracy”.

He said the Election Commission, which functions under BJP’s influence, was delivering a severe blow to democracy and the Constitution. “In such a situation, it becomes the responsibility of Congress workers to go door-to-door and make people aware that an illegal and unconstitutional government has been established in Haryana,” he added.

Rao said farmers were the most distressed today as there was no MSP, fertilisers and seeds were not available on time and the farmers, who were promised that their income would be doubled have instead seen their debt getting doubled. Haryana ranks number one in unemployment, law and order has collapsed and criminal gangs are operating without fear, he added.

Kumari Selja said the Congress protest was not a campaign to gain power but a movement to restore people’s rights. “The BJP, through deceitful tactics, is stealing votes and snatching away citizens’ voting rights. The government currently in power in Haryana has been formed by stealing votes and looting the rights of the people,” she added.

Randeep Surjewala said, “The freedom we enjoy today came from the relentless struggle of freedom fighters. The Constitution drafted under the leadership of Dr BR Ambedkar gave millions of women, farmers, poor and oppressed the right to vote and the right to equality. But today, the BJP government is snatching away people’s rights through deceit and manipulation.”

He added that those who steal your vote also steal your ration, employment opportunities, pensions, Dalit rights, and even students’ scholarships.