Watch| Poll Panel Targets Rahul Gandhi in Voter Fraud Row New Wine, Old Bottle

The Election Commission was quick to react sharply to Rahul Gandhi on Friday night, labeling his charges of voter fraud by the Bharatiya Janata Party as nothing short of "new wine in an old bottle."

The Commission brought to mind another episode in 2018 when the Congress had tried to deceive the Supreme Court. This was regarding a plea submitted by former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, which had pointed out discrepancies in the voter rolls of the state.

At that time, the Congress asked to have searchable access to the list of voters, citing allegations of 36 double-registered voters—a problem the EC had already reported to have been fixed. The Supreme Court ultimately turned it down.

Now, in 2025, aware that the same trick won't hold in court, the Congress is attempting to cheat people by making claims of electoral roll irregularities… stating the same names figure in many places," the Election Commission explained in a post on X.

The Commission gave the example of a voter called Aditya Srivastava who had been registered in three states, but added that this anomaly had been corrected months ago.

Additionally, responding to Rahul Gandhi and Congress's repeated requests for a searchable, machine-readable version of the voters list to identify potential duplications or faults, the EC referred to the 2018 Kamal Nath judgment, which laid down a precedent on the matter.

That decision recognized the EC's duty to release draft voter lists in PDF form but held that the law does not require the list to be searchable or machine-readable. The court confirmed that the Election Commission has the right to choose the format.

The Commission highlighted that there are established procedures under the law for reporting potential errors and filing appeals, criticizing Rahul Gandhi for “sensationalizing the matter with baseless claims in the media.” The EC reiterated its challenge: if Gandhi truly believes his allegations, he should either respect the law by signing a declaration or apologize to the nation.

Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Vote Chori’ Claims

On Thursday, Rahul Gandhi made PowerPoint presentations during meetings of INDIA opposition bloc to back his claims of massive voter rigging. He alleged that the rigging cost the Congress seven seats in the Lok Sabha in Karnataka in the May 2024 elections and their Maharashtra Assembly elections loss in November.

He pointed to the Mahadevapura Assembly constituency in Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha constituency as a center of Congress's internal probes, claiming more than 1.02 lakh bogus votes.

BJP's PC Mohan won the Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha seat election defeating Congress's Mansoor Ali Khan by 32,707 votes and gaining a fourth successive term.

Gandhi reinforced his accusations the next day at a rally in Bengaluru, warning the Election Commission to “Think twice before attacking the Constitution.”

BJP leader Amit Malviya dismissed Gandhi’s claims, accusing him of “indulging in political theatre to obfuscate facts, sow doubt among the public, and damage the reputation of a constitutional body responsible for free and fair elections.”