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The Karnataka chief electoral officer said Congress MP Rahul Gandhi had cited Election Commission records to show that a voter, identified as Shakun Rani, had cast her vote twice
Congress leader and LoP in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi with Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar during the party’s ‘Vote Adhikar Rally’, at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on August 8. (Image: PTI/Shailendra Bhojak)
A day after the EC asked Congress MP Rahul Gandhi to either give a declaration or apologise for his voter theft allegations, Karnataka’s chief electoral officer on Sunday asked him to provide documents so that it can conduct a “detailed” probe into the matter.
The Karnataka chief electoral officer (CEO) said Gandhi had cited Election Commission (EC) records to show that a voter, identified as Shakun Rani, had cast her vote twice. The state poll panel, however, said this is not the case as per its preliminary inquiry and the document used by him had not been issued by a polling officer.
“In your ibid Press Conference, you have stated that the documents shown in your presentation are from the records of the Election Commission of India. You have said: ‘This is EC data’,” the Karnataka CEO wrote in its letter dated August 10, addressed to Gandhi.
“You have also stated that as per the records given by the polling officer, Smt. Shakun Rani has voted twice. You have said: ‘Es ID card per do baar vote lagahai, wo jo tick hai, polling booth ke officer kihai’,” the letter said.
In the letter, the CEO said Shakun Rani has negated his allegation and stated that she has voted only once. As per “preliminary enquiry conducted by this office”, it has been revealed that the document used by him was not issued by a polling officer.
“On inquiry, Smt. Shakun Rani has stated that she has voted only once and not twice, as alleged by you. Preliminary enquiry conducted by this office also reveals that the tick marked document shown by you in the presentation (copy enclosed) is not a document issued by the polling officer,” the letter said.
It further said on the basis of this, the Congress leader should provide the documents in his possession so that the poll body can conduct a “detailed inquiry” into his allegations.
“Therefore, you are kindly requested to provide the relevant documents on the basis of which you have concluded that Smt. Shakun Rani or anyone else has voted twice, so that a detailed inquiry can be undertaken by this office,” it added.
‘OUR DEMAND FROM EC CLEAR’
Gandhi, meanwhile, doubled down on his vote theft allegations and noted that a “clean” voter roll is imperative for free and fair elections. He linked his stand to a fight to “protect” democracy.
“Vote Chori is an attack on the foundational idea of ‘one man, one vote’. A clean voter roll is imperative for free and fair elections. Our demand from the EC is clear – be transparent and release digital voter rolls so that people and parties can audit them. This fight is to protect our democracy,” Gandhi posted on X.
Vote Chori is an attack on the foundational idea of ‘one man, one vote’. A clean voter roll is imperative for free and fair elections. Our demand from the EC is clear – be transparent and release digital voter rolls so that people and parties can audit them. Join us and… https://t.co/4V9pOpGP68— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 10, 2025
The Congress said it will hold a meeting of its general secretaries, incharges, and frontal organisation heads on Monday (August 11) to discuss a nationwide campaign against “voter list manipulation and election fraud”.
On August 7, Gandhi held a press conference citing internal analysis. He said the Congress expected to win 16 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka but ended up with only nine. He said the party probed the seven unexpected losses, zeroing in on Mahadevapura, where he alleged vote theft of 1,00,250 votes.
“Our internal polling told us we would win 16 seats in Karnataka; we won nine. We then focused on seven unexpected losses. We focused on Mahadevapura… All data is 2024 data from the Election Commission; the total votes polled in the Lok Sabha were 6.26 lakh. The BJP won with 6,58,915, securing a margin of 32,707. But then we look at Mahadevapura, where Congress polls 1,15,586 and BJP polls 2,29,632. The Congress wins all vidhan sabhas but this one,” he said.
The Election Commission of India has again asked him to either give a declaration on his allegations regarding the voter lists. “Rahul Gandhi should either give a Declaration as per rules or apologise to the country for his false allegations,” it said.
The Congress-led Karnataka government, however, has said there is no need for Gandhi to provide the relevant documents. It said the state Congress unit will file a complaint with the State Election Commission on the matter.
Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara said: “Since there are allegations of vote rigging in our state constituency, we will file a complaint in the state on behalf of the KPCC. Rahul Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, will file a complaint with the Central Election Commission…the Election Commission has asked Rahul Gandhi to provide documents regarding the allegations. It can say whatever it wants, but we will provide them according to the rules of the commission. There is no need for Rahul Gandhi to provide documents. Since he is in our state, the KPCC president will provide them. There is a difference in the voter list, which means the commission should accept it…”
(With agency inputs)
Oindrila Mukherjee is a senior sub-editor who works for the rewrite and breaking news desks. Her nine years of experience in print and digital journalism range from editing and reporting to writing impactful st…Read More
Oindrila Mukherjee is a senior sub-editor who works for the rewrite and breaking news desks. Her nine years of experience in print and digital journalism range from editing and reporting to writing impactful st… Read More
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