Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], November 20 : Rajasthan's former BJP President, Arun Chauturvedi, on Thursday criticised senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's allegations against the Election Commission of India (ECI) and other constitutional bodies.
Speaking with ANI, Chaturvedi accused Gehlot of trying to save his position in the party and questioned Congress's intentions.
Arun Chaturvedi said, "It is unfortunate that Ashok Gehlot, who is known to be such a big leader and has remained the chief minister of Rajasthan for so many years. Firstly, he is trying to save his position in the party, and I have never seen him so weak."
He stated that Congress has crossed a line by questioning the impartiality of institutions like the Supreme Court, ECI, and armed forces. Chaturvedi pointed out that Congress's repeated claims of EVM hacking and ballot paper theft undermine trust in the electoral process.
"Secondly, it is a dilemma for the Congress party that in the process of questioning the intentions of the BJP party and PM Narendra Modi, it crossed the line and started even to ask the leanings and intentions of the constitutional institutions of India. They question the intentions of the army, the Supreme Court, the ECI, the ED, and the CBI, all of whom are performing their duties impartially."
Chaturvedi also raised concerns about Congress's stance on voter list revision, suggesting it might benefit illegal immigrants. He challenged Congress to clarify whether it represents citizens or illegal immigrants, questioning the party's credibility.
He added, "And now they have crossed the limit by constantly questioning the intentions of the ECI. They are continuously losing and saying that the ballot papers are stolen. The EVMs are hacked, and now they are even attacking SIR (Special Intensive Revision), whose purpose is to purify the voter list. It's not happening for the first time; SIR also occurred during the Congress era. Then they had no problem; the voter list was also renewed. Through all these activities, are they trying to give voting rights to the people born outside the country who are illegal immigrants? Please, provide an answer, Congress Party, are you the party of citizens or the representative of illegal immigrants? This is a question that has arisen for the people."
This comes after Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of acting in "collusion" with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the centre, with questionable intentions from the beginning.
During a press conference earlier, Gehlot strongly questioned the ECI's handling of the nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) drive while blaming the poll body's "foolishness" and "mishandling" for the alleged controversies. He claimed that this has caused people to doubt the institution's "credibility".
Gehlot stated, "The controversy could have been entirely avoided if the ECI had called a meeting with all political parties, taken them into confidence, and explained its plan for ensuring transparent voter lists."
He highlighted the serious consequences of the SIR pressure, mentioning reports of three Booth Level Officers (BLOs) "dying by suicide" across the county. He demanded an explanation from the ECI for these "tragic" events.
Gehlot reiterated earlier criticisms that ECI remained a "mute spectator" during the recent Bihar elections, when he alleged. The ruling party distributed cash and benefits to women, which he termed a violation of the Model Code of Conduct.