New Delhi, Jul 1 (PTI) – On Tuesday, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan announced that the Congress has instituted a committee led by him to conduct an in-depth examination of alleged electoral irregularities in the state assembly polls. This committee aims to develop recommendations for improving and potentially reforming the electoral process. Chavan revealed that approximately 100 leaders from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) have submitted election petitions and expressed that the committee has appealed to the Congress leadership to arrange for a legal team from Delhi for support.
During an interview with PTI, Chavan alleged that in multiple Maharashtra constituencies, including his own Karad South, instances occurred where people cast multiple votes by removing indelible ink. He mentioned that one key objective of the committee is to consider the feasibility of reverting to paper ballots, and the panel intends to gather feedback from various stakeholders before making its recommendation.
"There was a significant meeting in Delhi yesterday, attended by several senior Congress leaders from Maharashtra," he mentioned. This meeting was presided over by AICC General Secretary Ramesh Chennithala, who is in charge of the Maharashtra unit, and witnessed the presence of Pradesh Congress President Harshwardhan Vasantrao Sapkal among many senior leaders. The discussions at the meeting spanned a wide array of topics, notably the irregularities in the 2024 assembly polls, which were prominently highlighted by Rahul Gandhi, Chavan said.
Chavan elaborated that one outcome was to advance Rahul Gandhi's allegations regarding the addition of 41 lakh new voters in the five-month period between the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra assembly elections. The party resolved to form a committee chaired by Chavan, dedicated to scrutinizing these irregularities in order to prevent their recurrence. The objective is to document these findings publicly, leaving the Election Commission with the decision to modify the systems.
While about 100 MVA candidates have lodged election petitions, historically such pleas result in negligible changes, often after a lapse of five years, Chavan noted. "While we do not anticipate significant changes to the election results, our aim is to enhance the process to reduce susceptibility to manipulation and fraud. Our attempt is to safeguard democracy from becoming a mere facade," Chavan stressed. "In the five years between earlier assembly elections, the number of voters grew by 31 lakh, which means an increase of about 50,000 per month. However, between the Lok Sabha polls and the subsequent state elections, 41 lakh voters were added in just five months, equaling 9-10 lakh voters monthly," he pointed out, questioning the origin of these voters.
Chavan accused that multiple registrations were intentionally permitted while the Election Commission remained negligent. He also mentioned a controversial statement by Amit Shah promoting a 10% rise in votes at every booth, hinting at possible manipulation. The committee will prepare and subsequently submit recommendations in a report to Congress President Kharge.
Highlighting irregularities, Gandhi termed these incidents as more than mere glitches but as significant "vote theft." He demanded the disclosure of machine-readable digital voter rolls and CCTV footage. Gandhi called for these resources to be seen as tools for fortifying democracy, not secretive ornaments. In his article titled "Match-fixing Maharashtra" in The Indian Express, Gandhi indicated concerns over the fairness of Indian elections, citing instances of large-scale electoral rigging, questioning the results of the 2024 Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha elections. According to Gandhi, the voter turnout figures appeared unusually inflated. "Election Commission data from 2019 Vidhan Sabha elections reflected 8.98 crore registered voters in Maharashtra. This figure rose to 9.29 crore for the May 2024 Lok Sabha elections and further surged to 9.70 crore by the November 2024 Vidhan Sabha elections – a spike of 41 lakh in five months."
The Election Commission responded to Gandhi’s rigging allegations in the 2024 Maharashtra polls, reaffirming that all elections adhere to the legal framework established by Parliament. The Commission clarified that any election-related issues would ideally be addressed through petitions filed by the INC candidates in the competent court of law. Nevertheless, it welcomed Gandhi to either write to them or meet in person for a discussion on these matters at a time and date mutually convenient.
(Only the headline of this report may have been reworked by Editorji; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
