'Baseless, inflammatory': Ex-bureaucrats, judges slam Rahul Gandhi, Congress for attacks on EC

Days after the Congress suffered a setback in the Bihar Assembly elections while continuing to allege “vote chori”, a group of 272 senior civil society members — including 16 judges, 123 retired bureaucrats with 14 Ambassadors among them, and 133 retired Armed Forces officers — has, in an open letter, accused Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and the Congress of undermining the Election Commission of India (ECI) through baseless and inflammatory rhetoric.

In their letter released on November 18, the signatories warn that India’s democratic framework is being eroded not by coercion but by “a rising tide of venomous rhetoric directed toward its foundational institutions.”

The letter includes signatures of Justice S N Dhingra, former Delhi High Court judge, Nirmal Kaur, IPS, former Jharkhand DGP, among others.

“We, the senior citizens of civil society, express our grave concern that India’s democracy is under assault, not by force, but by a rising tide of venomous rhetoric directed toward its foundational institutions,” the letter reads.

It highlighted repeated claims by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi that he possesses “open and shut proof” of vote theft, alleging that the Commission is part of a conspiracy.

“There has been no formal complaint filed by him (Rahul), along with the prescribed sworn affidavit,” the signatories underlined.

They argued that such outbursts reflect nothing more than frustration. “This pattern of behaviour reflects what might be called ‘impotent rage’ -- deep anger born of repeated electoral failure and frustration, without a concrete plan to reconnect with the people,” the letter reads.

The group also pulled up other Congress leaders, Opposition parties, NGOs, scholars and public commentators who have called the EC the “B-team of the BJP”.

“When electoral outcomes are favourable in certain states where opposition-driven political parties form governments, criticism of the Election Commission disappears. When they are unfavourable… the Commission becomes the villain in every narrative," they said.

The signatories further said that the poll body must be protected as a constitutional sentinel, not turned into a “political punching bag”.

Calling on the EC to maintain transparency and “defend itself through legal channels when necessary,” the letter urged political leaders “to compete not through baseless accusation but through policy articulation, and to accept democratic verdicts with grace.”