Poll body working with BJP: Congress targets CEC in rally against ‘vote theft’

The Congress on Sunday turned Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan into a charged political battleground, accusing the Election Commission of surrendering its independence and enabling what it called systematic “vote theft” to keep the BJP in power.

The mega rally, held under the slogan ‘Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod’, marked a sharp escalation in the Opposition’s campaign against the poll panel, with senior party leaders directly naming Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and accusing him of undermining the constitutional right to vote.

Several party heavyweights, including Sonia Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, Sachin Pilot, Ajay Maken, Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Deepender Hooda, Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Randeep Surjewala, Revanth Reddy, Alka Lamba and Devender Yadav, attended the rally.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, “Doubts now shadow every stage of the election process. When institutions meant to protect democracy appear compromised, citizens must speak up.”

Naming CEC Gyanesh Kumar and ECs Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, she said they would one day be held accountable for decisions that, according to the Congress, have deprived people of their voting rights.

Claiming that even the BJP was aware that it would not succeed in a genuinely fair contest, Priyanka challenged the saffron party to face ballot paper-based elections. Referring to the alleged cash transfer of Rs 10,000 to women during elections in Bihar, she said the EC’s silence during the model code of conduct exposed its ‘selective blindness’. If this was not vote theft, what was, she asked.

LoP in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi struck a similar note, accusing the EC of acting in step with the BJP. He further alleged that complaints of voter manipulation were being ignored. “The ruling party relies on power to project courage, but falters when forced to defend its record without institutional cover,” he said.

Rahul also referred to his recent confrontation with Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament, claiming that Shah had stepped in to defend the EC during the debate on electoral reforms.

“The Home Minister appeared uneasy, with his hand shaking, because the BJP’s confidence flows only from its grip on power,” Rahul said, reiterating his challenge for a public debate on ‘evidence of voter deletions and duplicate entries’ in states such as Karnataka, Haryana and Maharashtra.

He warned that a law brought by the Modi government to shield election commissioners from accountability would be overturned if his party returned to power.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the thinking of the RSS, BJP and the Manusmriti threatened to erode the Constitution. He urged party workers to stand firmly behind Rahul, arguing that safeguarding vote was inseparable from safeguarding the nation.

Kharge also accused the BJP of exploiting religion to control citizens, warning that surrendering self-respect would lead to political enslavement. He rejected attempts to discredit leaders of the freedom movement, saying those who now question their legacy were simultaneously engaged in vote theft.

Sachin Pilot also criticised the Election Commission for failing to directly address public concerns. He said it was troubling that BJP spokespersons appeared to be speaking on behalf of the poll body, while the institution itself remained silent.