‘Why me, not Anurag Thakur?’: Rahul questions CEC’s affidavit warning; reiterates SIR ‘stealing votes’ in Bihar claim | India News
NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday hit out at the Election Commission over its affidavit warning, doubling down on his allegation that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls in Bihar is nothing but “stealing votes.”Launching a 1,300-km ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ from Bihra’sSasaram along with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Rahul in Aurangabad said, “SIR means stealing votes from the people of Bihar. Earlier, they used to do it secretly. Now they are doing it openly in front of everyone.”“The Election Commission asks for an affidavit from me. But when Anurag Thakur says the same thing that I am saying, it does not ask for an affidavit from him,” the leader of opposition added.His attack came shortly after Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar in a press conference, rejected the Opposition’s allegations and insisted that the voter roll process was fully transparent.CEC Kumar issuing a stern warning said that Rahul Gandhi must either submit an affidavit supporting his claims or apologise within seven days. “If no declaration under oath given within 7 days, claims will be considered baseless and invalid…,” he said, adding that those making unfounded allegations should apologise to the nation.The CEC rejected the Opposition’s allegations, stressing that the voter roll process is transparent. “You all know that as per the law, the birth of every political party takes place only through registration with the Election Commission. So how can the EC discriminate among those very parties? For the EC, there is no ruling side or opposition side; all are equal,” the CEC added.Rahul further responded to CEC Kumar’s clarification saying that the EC cannot release CCTV footage of voters due to privacy concerns, and stressed that the Commission treats all political parties equally.“I want to ask them, you made a law for CCTV. Then why did you change that law? Why did the government change it? Do you know that no case can be filed against the Election Commissioner? Do you know when this law was made? This law was made in 2023. Why was this law made in 2023?” the leader of opposition asserted.“Because Narendra Modi and Amit Shah want that no action can be taken against the Election Commission. Because the Election Commission is helping them and is stealing votes with them,” he added, alleging that the PM Modi led-government deliberately changed CCTV-related laws in 2023 .Kumar had earlier said that the EC cannot share CCTV footage of voters as it violates privacy, and reminded that all political parties are equal before the Commission.“We saw a few days ago that photos of many voters were presented to the media without their permission. Allegations were made against them, they were used. Should the Election Commission share the CCTV videos of any voter including their mothers, daughters-in-law, daughters? Only those whose names are in the voter list cast their votes to elect their candidate,” CEC Kumar had said.Rahul also mocked the voter deletions, recalling a viral video he shared last week of having tea with people who had been marked “dead” in the revised draft list.“We, INDIA alliance leaders, have made up our mind that we will not allow vote theft in Bihar…Did you see my video where I am drinking tea with dead people? The Election Commission killed people who are alive. Their name was deleted. I asked them why their name was deleted?” he said.The Voter Adhikar Yatra, supported by the INDIA bloc partners including the RJD, CPI(ML), and VIP, will run for 16 days across 20 districts and conclude with a rally in Patna on September 1. Supporters carrying party flags raised slogans of “vote chor, gaddi chhor” against the BJP and the EC during the launch.With the Bihar Assembly polls just three months away, the yatra is being seen as a united show of strength by the Opposition in the state.
