Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on the Election Commission (EC) during his Voter Adhikar Yatra in Bihar, accusing it of colluding with the ruling BJP to facilitate what he termed “vote chori” (vote theft). Addressing supporters in Gaya on Monday, Gandhi directly warned the three Election Commissioners, alleging that they were working in favour of the BJP.
Rahul Gandhi’s Warning to Election Commissioners
At the yatra in Gaya, Gandhi declared, “I would like to tell the 3 Election Commissioners – understand one thing, it is fine that there is Modi ji’s government right now. Tejashwi ji has said that you too have taken BJP membership, you are working for the BJP but understand one thing; there will come a day when there will be INDIA Alliance’s government in Bihar and at the Centre. Phir hum aap teenon ko dekhenge and take action against you. (Then we will see you three and take action against you).”
#WATCH | Bihar: At ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in Gaya, Lok Sabha LoP and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi says, “…I would like to tell the 3 Election Commissioners – understand one thing, it is fine that there is Modi ji’s government right now. Tejashwi ji has said that you too have taken… pic.twitter.com/2JISppKaVz
— ANI (@ANI) August 18, 2025
“EC is accountable; it is their ‘theft’ that has been caught but they ask me for an affidavit. I’d like to tell the EC, the entire country will ask for your affidavit…We are going to detect your ‘theft’ in every state, every Lok Sabha constituency, every Vidhan Sabha constituency and show it to the country…Just like Modi ji announces special packages, EC has brought a new special package for Bihar – SIR,” the Congress leader jibed.
#WATCH | Gaya, Bihar: Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi says, “…EC is accountable; it is their ‘theft’ that has been caught but they ask me for an affidavit. I’d like to tell the EC, the entire country will ask for your affidavit…We are going to detect your ‘theft’ in every state,… pic.twitter.com/89OHVIEUOK
— ANI (@ANI) August 18, 2025
The Congress MP further accused the EC of undermining democracy by enabling electoral fraud. “When they do ‘vote chori’, they attack this soul (Constitution), they attack the Constitution, they attack Bharat Mata. We will let neither Narendra Modi nor the Election Commission attack this. Nobody can erase this Constitution… Election Commissioner, understand one thing well – if you do not do your job, strict action is going to be taken against you,” he said, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Allegations of Electoral Manipulation
Citing earlier instances, Gandhi referred to irregularities in Maharashtra and Haryana elections. According to news agency PTI, he said, “Will you allow vote theft? For many years, we were having doubts about election. It became clear in Maharashtra elections, 1 crore new voters were added between the LS election, and the Assembly election. We won the LS elections, four months after, BJP alliance won, our votes did not decrease, BJP won at the constituencies where votes were added, means, Maharashtra, Haryana elections were rigged.”
VIDEO | Voter Adhikar Yatra: Adressing people in Gayaji, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) says, “Will you allow vote theft? For many years, we were having doubts about election. It became clear in Maharashtra elections, 1 crore new voters were added between the LS… pic.twitter.com/C0g2TwYJrb
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 18, 2025
Gandhi said the Congress conducted its own inquiry and found over one lakh fake voters in Bengaluru Central. “I did a PC, I informed the ECI, votes are being stolen by five ways… I told it clearly, the ECI did not check, instead asked for affidavit from me, they ask me to give affidavit in seven days, responsibility is theirs, I want to tell the ECI, the whole country will ask for affidavit from the ECI,” he remarked.
‘SIR’ as a New Tool of Rigging: Rahul Gandhi In Bihar
Gandhi alleged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was being used as a “new weapon for vote theft”. Sharing his concerns on his WhatsApp channel after meeting voters in Sasaram who claimed their names were deleted during the revision exercise, he wrote, “The SIR is a new weapon for vote theft. Coincidentally, these people standing with me in this picture are a ‘living’ proof of this theft. All of them had cast their votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha election – but by the time the Bihar Assembly polls came, their identity, their existence were erased from the democracy of India.”
Among those affected, Gandhi named farmer and retired soldier Raj Mohan Singh (70), Dalit labourer Umravati Devi (35), labourer Dhanjay Kumar Bind (30), former MGNREGA worker Sita Devi (45), labourer Raju Devi (55), and minority community labourer Mohmuddin Ansari (52). “The collusion of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Election Commission (EC) is punishing them for being Bahujan and poor – even our soldiers were not spared,” he said, adding that this was an attack on the right to “one person, one vote.”
Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Adhikar Yatra Across Bihar
The Voter Adhikar Yatra, which began in Sasaram on Sunday, is covering 1,300 km across Bihar in a hybrid format – partly on foot and partly by vehicles. Gandhi is joined by RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, Vikassheel Insan Party chief Mukesh Sahani, and CPI(ML) Liberation leader Dipankar Bhattacharya. The yatra will culminate with a rally in Patna on September 1.
During a halt in Aurangabad, Gandhi met more people who said their names were deleted from voter rolls. He alleged, “The votes of people who voted in the last four-five elections were also stolen in Bihar. And, when asked for the reason, the only answer received was – an order has come from above. This is a fight for the rights of the poor – we will not stop. We will stop vote theft.”
He also reminded that the Narendra Modi government in 2023 had brought in a law preventing action against EC officials, which he termed “completely wrong”.
The yatra, Gandhi said, is a fight to safeguard the principle of equal voting rights and to expose what he calls systemic attempts at disenfranchisement.