New Delhi [India], August 3 : Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi on Sunday alleged that the Election Commission of India (ECI) was functioning like a "puppet" of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and said the opposition had "solid evidence" to support its claims.
Speaking to ANI, the Congress MP further criticised the Election Commission for "not maintaining neutrality" in its public responses.
"The Election Commission is working as a puppet of the BJP. There is solid evidence for the allegations made by the opposition. Instead of responding, the Election Commission is speaking in political language, which is not a good thing for an independent institution and the public. The Election Commission should understand that governments come and go, but institutions remain, democracy remains, the country remains, so at the very least, they should work in the interest of the country, not in the interest of the government," Imran Pratapgarhi said.
Earlier in the day, Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal stated that his party is going to reveal the "serious malpractices" of the poll body in Bengaluru on August 5.
Venugopal, speaking to ANI, alleged that the names of many voters have been "excluded" from the draft electoral rolls for Bihar recently released by the EC.
He further said that there will be a get-together of opposition INDIA bloc leaders on August 7 in Delhi.
Amid the claims over the deletion of names from the voters' list in Bihar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday said that not a single claim or objection has been filed by any political party since the publication of the draft electoral rolls on August 1.