New Delhi, 18 August
The Opposition is considering moving an impeachment notice against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of electoral manipulation, or “vote chori”, sources said on Sunday. Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi confirmed, “We will be taking a decision very soon.” However, removing a CEC requires a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament — a threshold the Opposition currently does not command.
Meanwhile, CEC Gyanesh Kumar strongly rebutted the allegations of electoral fraud raised by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, defending the integrity of India’s voting process. Without naming Gandhi directly, Kumar criticised the Congress MP’s presentation on voter rolls as a “wrong analysis” and challenged him to either submit an affidavit supporting his claims within seven days or “apologise to the nation.”
At an August 7 press conference, Rahul Gandhi had alleged large-scale discrepancies in the rolls, including duplicate entries, voters registered under house number “zero,” and dozens listed at the same address. Kumar dismissed the claims as misleading, pointing to the Mahadevapura Assembly segment in Karnataka’s Bangalore Central constituency, where Congress itself won the 2023 state polls.
On allegations of duplicate voting, Kumar clarified: “It is one thing to have a name in more than one booth, and quite another to actually cast votes at two places. Voting twice is a criminal offence.” He added, “When asked for proof, no answer was given. The Election Commission fearlessly stood, stands and will stand like a rock with all voters of all religions and sections of society.”
The CEC also rejected Gandhi’s assertion that duplicate entries amounted to “vote chori,” saying electoral rolls and the act of voting were separate processes governed by different laws. “When a voter presses the button, he can press it only once — vote theft cannot happen,” Kumar asserted.
Responding to concerns over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists in Bihar, raised by Congress and ally RJD, Kumar said the exercise was mandated under the Representation of People Act. The outreach, covering over seven crore voters, began on June 24 and was largely completed by July 20. He cited precedent, noting the last such revision in Bihar in 2003 was also conducted during the monsoon.
Appealing to 12 political parties involved through booth-level agents, Kumar urged them to raise objections before September 1, after which the draft rolls will be finalised. On claims of 22 lakh voter deaths in six months, he clarified that the figures spanned nearly two decades.
“One needs to have the stomach to listen to and understand the truth,” Kumar said, reiterating that the Commission was committed to safeguarding the sanctity of elections in the world’s largest democracy.
