Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of orchestrating “vote theft” through its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar, labeling it the BJP’s “election chori branch.” In a fiery post on X, Gandhi referenced a video by journalist Ajit Anjum, alleging that the ECI was caught “red-handed stealing votes” under the guise of SIR, a process the ECI insists is a routine cleanup of voter lists after 22 years to remove duplicates and ineligible entries while adding eligible voters.

“Bihar’s Election Commission has been caught red-handed stealing votes in the name of ‘SIR’. Their job is just theft, named ‘SIR’ – an FIR will be filed against those who expose them!” Gandhi wrote, questioning whether the ECI remains a neutral body or has become a BJP tool. Anjum, whose YouTube series has spotlighted the SIR, faces accusations from Begusarai authorities of inciting communal tensions, which he denies, sharing an FIR lodged against him.

Opposition parties, including Congress and RJD, claim the SIR could disenfranchise up to 2 crore of Bihar’s 7 crore voters, particularly marginalized groups, due to stringent documentation requirements. On July 10, the Supreme Court permitted the SIR to continue but urged the ECI to consider accepting Aadhaar, ration cards, and voter IDs as valid proof, with 80.11% of voters having submitted forms by July 12. Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar defended the exercise as “much-needed,” citing 78,000 booth-level officers and over 1 lakh volunteers aiding the process, which runs until July 25, with the final voter list due by September 30.

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