Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Sep 19: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s fresh attack on the Election Commission — alleging voter deletions carried out in seconds during odd hours — triggered a strong response from the BJP on Friday, with senior leaders Kiren Rijiju and Anurag Thakur accusing him of “baseless allegations” and “habitual frustration.”

Reiterating his “vote chori” claim, Gandhi shared a video clip alleging that on December 19, 2022, two voter names were deleted from Karnataka’s rolls in just 36 seconds at 4 am. “Wake up at 4 am, delete two voters, then go back to sleep — that’s how vote theft happened,” he remarked, accusing the Election Commission of “protecting the thieves.”

Rijiju, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, dismissed the charges and said Gandhi must accept responsibility for the Congress’ repeated electoral defeats. “The poor, farmers, and common people consider PM Modi their leader. After losing elections, if Rahul Gandhi keeps blaming the system, no one will accept it,” he said.

Former Union Minister Anurag Thakur also hit out, claiming the Congress had lost 90 per cent of elections under Gandhi’s leadership. “His frustration is increasing day by day. Making incorrect and baseless allegations has become his habit,” Thakur said.

The Election Commission, meanwhile, clarified that deletions from Karnataka’s voter rolls had been flagged by the poll body itself through a police complaint, and rejected Gandhi’s remarks as unfounded.

Opposition parties, including the Congress, have repeatedly accused the BJP and the EC of collusion in voter roll manipulation, pointing to incidents in Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Bihar. The EC, however, has consistently denied the charges, with the Supreme Court recently clearing the Bihar electoral roll revision.