Election Commission Invites Congress For Discussion On Malpractice Allegations
Amid allegations regarding rigging in the elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday invited the Congress party for a discussion on the concerns flagged by the party. The recently declared Maharashtra assembly election saw several allegations targeting the transparency and integrity of the electoral process, and the issues raised by the opposition, several candidates, and some media outlets included the differences between votes polled and counted, voting percentage discrepancies, among others.
In a letter, the poll body said the Congress is aware that the electoral rolls are always prepared and finalized with close involvement of all political parties, including yourselves, regarding the first allegations of addition and deletion of voters in Maharashtra. Earlier, the grand old party had alleged deletion of many of the opposition member’s names from the electoral roll. “The copies of the draft electoral roll published are given to all political parties, and the verification process involves political parties at every stage of the process,” the letter stated.
Read Also: Former Poll Body Chief Raises Concern Over Increase in Voter Turnout in Maharashtra
Regarding allegations on the voter turnout data, the Commission asserted that there was no discrepancy observed in the data and all numbers were available with all candidates polling station-wise and are verifiable. The letter added that the gap in the 5 pm polling data and the final voter turnout was due to procedural priorities, as presiding officers perform multiple statutory duties near the close of polling before updating the voter turnout data. The Congress had alleged a significant surge in voter turnout after the official closure of the voting processes at 5 pm.
ECI invites Congress for discussion on the issues raised by the party over Maharashtra assembly elections on 3.12.2024. pic.twitter.com/vi7D5RGxqa
— Arvind Gunasekar (@arvindgunasekar) November 30, 2024
“At 5 pm on the 20th, the turnout in Maharashtra was deemed to be 58.22%. By 11:30 pm on the same day, it had increased to 65.02%. Before counting on the 23rd, it had gone up yet again to 66.05%,” a report by The Wire noted, suggesting that an additional 7 percent voter turnout.
Read Also: Entire Electoral Process Is Being Severely Compromised: CWC Resolution—Full Text
In the recently held Maharashtra election, the Mahayuti Alliance won a landslide majority, with the BJP winning 132 seats. while the opposition MVA was almost decimated, with the Congress winning only 16 seats out of a total 288. The result was completely opposite to the Lok Sabha election result in the state, which saw the opposition coalition winning the majority of the parliamentary seats.
On Friday, the Congress had said the integrity of the entire electoral process is being severely compromised, adding that the party said it will launch a “national movement.” “The Congress Working Committee (CWC) believes the integrity of the entire electoral process is being severely compromised. Free and fair elections are a constitutional mandate that is being called into serious question by the partisan functioning of the Election Commission. Increasing sections of society are becoming frustrated and deeply apprehensive. The Congress will take up these public concerns as a national movement,” the Congress said in a statement.
The Congress also noted that the “electoral malpractice” also influenced the Haryana assembly election result. The result of Haryana was also a shocker to the grand old party, given the Lok Sabha election result, exit poll, and the purported ground reality reports.
However, the commission has invited a Congress delegation to its office on Tuesday to discuss the matter in person.
