"Partnership going on between the Election Commission and the BJP": Rahul Gandhi reiterates "vote theft" allegations on ECI

Rahul Gandhi was addressing the gathering during his Voter Adhikaar Yatra in Nawada and alleged that PM Narendra Modi, Union Minister Amit Shah and ECI of snatching the fundamental rights from the people.

"There are lakhs of people in Bihar who voted and their names were deleted from the voter list. There is a partnership going on between the Election Commission and the BJP. They are together stealing votes. This is your right and the Constitution gives you this. You fight for this, work hard and Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and the Election Commission are snatching it from you. I, Tejashwi and the rest of the leaders here are standing up and telling them that we will not let you steal even a single vote of Bihar," Rahul Gandhi said while addressing the gathering.

The Congress MP further targeted the ECI and BJP stating that they "magically" created 1 crore new voters in Maharashtra. He further said that new voters were added in Maharashtra after Lok Sabha 2024 elections which resulted in BJP's win in the state assembly polls.

"Maharashtra, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, these are the places they have stolen from. In Maharashtra, they magically create 1 crore new voters after the Lok Sabha elections. We win the Lok Sabha and after the new voters come, BJP wins. We asked the Election Commission who these people are but they don't answer. We asked them (ECI) to show the videography, they said we won't show it. They changed the law and now a new way of voter theft is being done in Bihar, Sir, they are stealing in a new way in front of your and the country's eyes. We won't let them steal," the Congress MP said.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday Rahul Gandhi continued his Voter Adhikar Yatra in Bihar against the Special Intensive Revision and his "vote theft" allegations on ECI.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and CPI-M leader Dipankar Bhattacharya are accompanying Rahul Gandhi.

The INDIA bloc on Tuesday intensified its protest against the "vote theft" allegations on Election Commision of India and Special Intensive Revision in Bihar outside the parliament building.

The protests saw the presence of prominent leaders including Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and others. Meanwhile, on Sunday, the Election Commission of India (ECI) addressed a press conference giving it's clarification over the "vote theft" allegations and SIR in Bihar. It also asked Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to submit a signed affidavit with proof of his claims of election rigging.

The opposition parties have been protesting against the revision of voter lists since the commencement of the Parliament monsoon session on July 21, with the treasury benches accusing the Opposition of disrupting Parliament proceedings. Calling the ongoing exercise as 'Silent Invisible Rigging' of votes, INDIA bloc leaders held banners calling for the stop of 'Vote chori.'

Notably, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju called on Congress and other opposition parties to refrain from creating disruptions in Parliament over issues related to the Election Commission. Rijiju, while speaking at a press conference, stated that any disputes between the Election Commission and political parties should be discussed directly with the EC, and not in the Parliament. (ANI)