Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s fresh allegations of widespread voter list manipulations in Maharashtra’s Rajura constituency have ignited a heated political confrontation, with the opposition demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The charges, which include claims of fraudulent voter additions via automated software, have cast a shadow over the Election Commission of India (ECI), prompting calls for an independent probe into the integrity of the electoral process.

Gandhi escalated his “vote theft” narrative on Thursday, accusing Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of shielding those undermining democracy. Citing evidence from a Karnataka constituency, he alleged systematic deletion of Congress supporters’ votes and pointed to similar irregularities in Rajura, Chandrapur district.

NCP (SP) spokesperson Clyde Crasto labeled the accusations “serious,” questioning how voter ID accounts were accessed and whether ECI insiders were complicit. “The ECI must conduct an independent inquiry and present the truth to the people of India,” Crasto stated on X, highlighting concerns over the security of the ECI’s portal.

Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal intensified the attack, claiming 6,850 votes were manipulated in Rajura, with an FIR filed by the state police under Fadnavis’ Home Ministry. “Rahul Gandhi has exposed how democracy is being sabotaged. The Mahayuti alliance has no moral right to remain in power,” Sapkal declared at a Thane press conference, accusing the ECI of double standards and demanding Fadnavis’ immediate resignation.

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The ruling BJP and Ajit Pawar-led NCP dismissed the allegations as baseless. BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhye called Gandhi the “king of vote theft,” urging him to pursue legal recourse rather than media campaigns. He referenced the ECI’s Bihar draft rolls revision in August, noting Congress failed to raise objections then, and accused Gandhi of targeting Muslim and Adivasi communities to create chaos. NCP’s Sunil Tatkare termed the claims “childish,” attributing them to Congress’s inability to accept its defeat in the November 2024 Maharashtra assembly elections. “Voters are knowledgeable enough to see through the INDIA bloc’s narrative,” Tatkare said in Nagpur.

As the controversy deepens, the ECI faces mounting pressure to address these allegations transparently, with the opposition signaling further revelations. The dispute threatens to reshape Maharashtra’s political landscape as trust in electoral integrity hangs in the balance.

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