New Delhi: The Congress - still fuming over defeat in the Maharashtra election - submitted an "urgent memorandum" to the Election Commission Friday, asking for an in-person meeting to red-flag "certain serious and grave inconsistencies... in data related to polling and counting processes".
In a 12-page document submitted this afternoon, the Congress also referred to doubts about voter data that were raised by former Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi and raised two points of concern.
The first was "arbitrary deletion of voters. and subsequent addition of over 10,000 voters in each constituency" and the second was an "inexplicable increase in voting percentages..."
Based on these points, the Congress has alleged a systemic effort to try and reduce the number of voters (and votes) "sympathetic to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (the opposition alliance, of which the Congress is a member, and which lost heavily to the BJP-led Mahayuti combine)".
The Congress has urged the EC to conduct a thorough investigation into its complaints.
Congress' Complaints To EC
Among the claims made in its submission to the EC, the Congress said the "arbitrary inclusion/deletion of voter records" led to an "unprecedented increase of (around) 47 lakh voters being added to the electoral roll from between July 2024 and November 2024".
"It is significant to note that out of the 50 Assembly seats where there was an average increase of 50,000 voters, the ruling regime and its allies secured victory from 47..." the Congress said.
The Congress submitted alleged manipulation of voter list at the Tuljapur seat as an example, noting "fake Aadhaar cards were created by individuals with differing photos and names" to cast illegal votes.
The Tuljapur seat - held by the Congress' Madhukarrao Chavan from 1999 to 2014 - was won by the BJP's Ranajagjitsinha Patil by 37,000 votes. This is the first time the BJP has ever won this seat.
On the second red-flag - i.e., discrepancies in voter turnout data - the Congress pointed out the EC's average voter turnout at 5 pm was 58.22 per cent, and that this jumped to 65.02 per cent by 11.30 pm.
"Further, there was another increase in voting percentage, ultimately being reported as 66.05 per cent, several hours prior to counting. From a common sense viewpoint, over 70 lakh votes being cast in the closing hour of polling is implausible and unheard of in electoral history..." the Congress reasoned.
"Even assuming time taken by one individual to cast their vote is two minutes... it is impossible for the Election Commission to have even come out with the final data by 11.30 pm, considering that 76 lakh voters would have exercised their franchise within the last hour of polling..."
"It is submitted," the Congress' letter concluded, "that the said discrepancies raise several questions about the manner in which the election was conducted across Maharashtra."
Congress' Complaints About Haryana Loss
Continuing claims about voter fraud, the slow rate at which data is published (on the EC's website) on counting day, and the credibility of EVMs, or electronic voting machines, made headlines earlier this month too, after the Congress complained about the Haryana poll result.
Exit polls had expected the party to claim a convincing win and the day began well, with the Congress surging into an early big lead. However, as counting continued the BJP scripted a comeback and, eventually, a comfortable win to claim a historic third term in the state.
A furious Congress refused to accept the verdict, insisting EVMs had been hacked and raising questions about alleged delays in the Election Commission publishing voting data online.
EC's Response To Earlier Congress Complaint
On complaints about the Haryana result, the EC had hit back hard, criticising the Congress for making "baseless allegations... when faced with inconvenient electoral outcomes", and warning it, and other parties, against "unfounded and sensational complaints" during voting and counting processes.
READ | "Haryana Electoral Process Flawless": EC Hits Back At Congress
BJP Slams Congress
The Congress' complaints about EVMs and potential voter fraud, meanwhile, have been picked up and trashed by the BJP. On Thursday the winning party pointed out that if its rival's claim about faulty EVMs are true, then the results of elections they had won should be questioned too.
READ | "If They Lose, They Cry. But If They Win...": BJP Mocks Congress On EVMs
"If they lose, they start crying about EVMs. And, if they win, the Congress wins... It is not the EVM, it is the Congress' intentions that are bad!" the BJP said in a Hindi post on X.
READ | "Jharkhand Election Fair But If We...": D Fadnavis On EVM Moans
In the final round of elections for 2024, the Congress-led INDIA bloc retained power in Jharkhand, thanks largely to Chief Minister Hemant Soren's Jharkhand Mukti Morcha. But the national party was thumped in Maharashtra, with the BJP leading its allies to a landslide win.
READ | Priyanka Gandhi Takes Oath As MP Holding Copy Of Constitution
The Congress did, however, manage to retain the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat; senior leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra made a sensational electoral debut from Kerala.
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