Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday raked up, again, his party's allegations about large-scale voter fraud, including manipulation of electoral rolls, ahead of elections.
Over the past decade the Congress, and other opposition parties, have repeatedly claimed foul play during voting and counting of votes, claiming, as in the case of Haryana last year, that questionable decisions by the Election Commission had swung polls in favour of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Those charges were raised by Rahul Gandhi this month in Parliament, with reference to the Maharashtra election, which the Maha Vikas Aghadi lost badly. Mr Gandhi claimed serious discrepancies in the state's voter list; he accused the BJP of "suddenly" adding 70 lakh voters to the roll, just five months after the party failed to win a majority of the state's 42 Lok Sabha seats.
READ | "70 Lakh Voters Added Suddenly": Rahul Gandhi's Maharashtra Charge
The Election Commission, responding to the charge, insisted there was no discrepancy in the data, either in terms of voter turnout or number of voters per constituency.
READ | "No Discrepancy": Poll Panel On Congress' Maharashtra Allegation
Undeterred, this morning, Mr Kharge, addressing a meeting of senior leaders at the party's new Delhi HQ, told Congress workers and supporters, "This rigging has to be stopped at all costs."
"A new challenge has arisen... you know that these days voter list manipulation is happening on a large scale in elections. Rahul Gandhiji also raised a question about this in the Lok Sabha."
"... the names of our supporters are deleted from voter lists. Or the name is removed and added from the adjacent booth. Or new names are added by the BJP just before elections."
Rahul Gandhi and the Congress' charge about voter list manipulation also drew fierce replies from Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who thundered, "Introspect instead of insulting Maharashtra! You have insulted the people of Maharashtra..."
READ | "Maharashtra Won't Forgive You": D Fadnavis On Congress' Poll Claim
Mr Kharge also referred to the controversy over the selection of a Chief Election Commissioner, who, under the current law, is picked (as Gyanesh Kumar was late last night) by a committee of the Prime Minister, a cabinet member to be nominated by the PM, and the Leader of the Opposition.
READ | Gyanesh Kumar Takes Over As Poll Chief, Before Top Court Hearing
The opposition, however, has argued this arrangement gives the ruling party control of the process and, therefore, proxy control over the conduct of elections across the country.
The Supreme Court is presently hearing challenges to the new law.
"Earlier, Chief Justice was included in selection committee for Chief Election Commissioner... by order of the Supreme Court. But Modiji removed him as well. This government does not even trust the impartiality of the Chief Justice of the country," Mr Kharge said.
Mr Kumar was selected as the new CEC after Mr Gandhi, who is on the panel as the Leader of the Opposition, submitted a dissent note pointing to the challenge to the law governing this process.
READ | "Midnight Decision Disrespectful": Rahul Gandhi On Poll Chief Pick
Mr Gandhi slammed the "disrespectful, midnight" decision.
Party sources, however, told NDTV Mr Kumar had been named so that the CEC post would not remain vacant, particularly with elections due in Bihar before November this year.
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