New Delhi [India], August 14 : Congress leader Pawan Khera on Wednesday alleged that BJP leader Anurag Thakur's quick access to voter data of two parliamentary constituencies indicated an "understanding" between the ruling party and the Election Commission (EC).
Khera highlighted the disparity in the time taken to obtain similar data, saying it took the Congress four to six months to collect information for one Assembly constituency, while the BJP had secured data for two parliamentary seats almost immediately.
"It took us 4-6 months to bring forward this data of one Assembly constituency. They have brought out the data of two Parliamentary constituencies. How did they get it? This proves that they have an understanding with the EC," Khera said.
He alleged that Thakur might have obtained the data directly from the "electronic voter list" and called it "evidence of crime."
Khera accused the BJP of trying to divert attention, but said that by raising questions over votes in Wayanad and Kannauj, the ruling party had validated the Opposition's charge of irregularities in the electoral rolls.
"Why is he diverting the issue? He presented some data today. Those were the data from Wayanad and Kannauj. He says that there are fake votes there too. So, he has proven what we have said. Anurag Thakur and BJP are raising the same question on EC that we had raised. So, they have proven what we said," he said.
Khera was reacting to Thakur's press conference in which he hit back at Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for his claim of "vote theft" alleging that Congress defeated Bhimrao Ambedkar, regarded as the father of the Indian Constitution, in the 1952 general election through electoral fraud.
He demanded that the BJP release the electronic voter list for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Varanasi constituency alleging that the BJP's agreement that the voter lists contain fake names means the 2024 Lok Sabha polls were conducted on flawed.
Khera demanded that the electronic voter list for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Varanasi constituency be made public.
He said, "When they have the electronic voter list with them, we demand that they make the electronic voter list of Varanasi, PM's constituency, public. We will make things clear."
He said both the BJP and the Opposition acknowledged fake voter lists, which meant the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were illegitimate and should be cancelled.
Khera noted, "When you say that this is a fake voter list, we too are saying that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were held on a fake voter list, so the 2024 elections should be considered illegitimate and should be cancelled. All political parties should together hold a fresh discussion on this as to how to get the voter list foolproof."
Earlier, at a press conference at the BJP headquarters, Anurag Thakur had targeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, claiming, "If we start from 1952, Congress and CPI together defeated Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar, a constitution maker and a saint-like leader, in the election. Congress laid the foundation of electoral corruption in the very first election of 1952."
"Check the records: 74,333 votes were rejected, while Ambedkar ji lost by just 14,561 votes. Congress ensured that a constitution maker, a Dalit leader, was eliminated in the very first election. Imagine, the one who created the constitution was defeated by the Congress family through electoral fraud," Thakur said.
The BJP MP alleged that Rahul Gandhi and his family had a history of questioning the Election Commission when they lost elections.
"This family and party have had a tradition from the beginning that if you lose an election, you raise questions about the Election Commission, the voters, or the functioning of the Election Commission. Indira Gandhi had said, Voters are a bunch of fools. When Rajiv Gandhi lost the election, he blamed the ballot paper. Rahul Gandhi's father used to say, Conduct elections with voting machines, and Rahul Gandhi says, Conduct elections with ballot papers," he said.