Kharge accuses EC of enabling ‘vote chori’, questions voter deletions

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the Election Commission of enabling alleged BJP-led “vote chori” and questioned voter deletions during SIR exercises. He cited changes in Maharashtra and Delhi electoral rolls, while eligible voters can file claims and objections until September 30

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday accused the Election Commission of acting like a “Save BJP’s Chair Commission” instead of the guardian of fair elections and said the ruling party’s conspiracy to “hollow out” India’s democracy through “vote chori” has come out in the open.

He said the people have understood the BJP’s conspiracy; they are now uniting against the theft of votes and will punish those behind it. In an X post in Hindi, Kharge claimed that the BJP adds votes where it suits them and splits the votes where it does not.

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“The BJP’s conspiracy to hollow out Indian democracy through ‘vote chori’ is coming out in the open. Where it suits the BJP, voters are added; where it does not suit them, votes are split,” the Congress chief alleged.

“Instead of acting as the guardian of fair elections, the Election Commission is functioning like the ‘Save BJP’s Chair Commission’,” he added. In Maharashtra, Kharge said, 39 lakh voters increased suddenly between the Lok Sabha and assembly elections, but now 2.07 crore voters are out of the SIR (Special Intensive Revision) draft list.

In Bengal, he said, 91 per cent of names removed from the SIR had to be reinstated after appeals. “The question is, were these voters removed during elections to make the BJP win?” he asked.
Kharge said the same game is being repeated in Delhi.

“Voters were increased before the assembly elections. Then names of 47.56 lakh voters vanished from the draft list and preparations are underway to issue notices to 33 lakh other voters,” he alleged.

In Telangana and Karnataka, he said, Congress workers are facing similar manipulations every day. “The country is now uniting against ‘vote chori’. The nation has understood the BJP’s conspiracy. The thief has been caught. Punishment will surely be meted out for holding democracy captive!” the Congress chief said.

More than 2.06 crore electors, accounting for 21.14 per cent of Maharashtra’s previous voter base, have not figured in the draft electoral roll following a Special Intensive Revision exercise, the Chief Electoral Officer said on Monday.

The draft roll currently has more than 7.71 crore voters, or 78.86 per cent of the previous electorate. It comprises 3.95 crore men, 3.75 crore women, and 3,087 third-gender voters, according to state election authorities.

They said about 2.06 crore people were not included in the draft roll as their enumeration forms were uncollectable; they were either untraceable, deceased, or had shifted residences.

Before the SIR, Maharashtra had 9.78 crore voters, of whom 78.86 per cent made it to the draft roll. Pune recorded the highest number of uncollectable enumeration forms at 28.6 lakh, followed by Thane with 28.5 lakh forms, Mumbai Suburban (26.5 lakh), Nagpur (14.43 lakh), Nashik (10.27 lakh) and Mumbai City (9.5 lakh), officials said.

The uncollectable forms relate to voters who were absent or could not be found at their registered addresses, had shifted residences, were deceased, had registered elsewhere, or had duplicate entries. The category also includes voters who declined to fill out and submit the enumeration form.

Eligible voters whose names are missing from the draft roll can file claims and objections between August 31 and September 30. They can seek inclusion by submitting Form 6, along with the required declaration. An objection to an entry can be filed through Form 7, and corrections to details such as name, address, age or gender can be sought through Form 8, it was stated.

Electoral registration officers and their assistants will process the claims, objections and notices between August 31 and October 29. The final electoral roll will be published on November 4, according to the Election Commission’s schedule.