Thrissur (Kerala) [India], August 8 : Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Kerala and Congress leader VD Satheesan on Friday said Rahul Gandhi's revelations had "clearly exposed the grave danger facing our electoral process" and called it the "biggest example of manipulation in the voters list to win elections."
Backing Gandhi's claims, Satheesan alleged large-scale voter fraud in BJP-ruled states and demanded a thorough probe into similar complaints in Kerala's Thrissur constituency.
Speaking to reporters, Satheesan said, "Rahul Gandhi's revelations yesterday clearly exposed the grave danger facing our electoral process, our democracy, and our constitutional values. It is a shocking disclosure, perhaps the biggest example of manipulation in the voters list to win elections."
"Over number of votes were added through fraudulent means in just one constituency. There were multiple voters with the same name, about 60 voters linked to a single-room house, and several irregularities like father's names being listed only as English initials, or house numbers marked as '0'," Satheesan said.
He also flagged alarming discrepancies in the newly enrolled voters' data, where some individuals listed as 18 years old were actually between 70 to 80 years old.
Satheesan further added, "Such large-scale electoral fraud has taken place across the country, including in the Maharashtra Assembly elections and the last Parliamentary elections. It is now being repeated in Bihar. PM Narendra Modi and his associates are in power by sabotaging free and fair elections, something seen only in authoritarian regimes, not in true democracies. They are not even fit to remain in power."
He also applauded Rahul Gandhi's presentation of the evidence, describing it as "concrete, clear and confident".
"Rahul Gandhi has presented this with concrete evidence, clarity, and firm confidence, and we take pride in his stand. The people of India will undoubtedly unite with him in his fight against dictatorship, fascism, and communalism," he said.
Satheesan also raised concerns about possible voter list manipulation in Kerala, particularly in the Thrissur Parliamentary constituency.
"There have been numerous complaints that the BJP and Sangh Parivar have illegally added votes in Thrissur. These allegations must be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly," he said.
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, said today that times would change and punishment would surely be meted out to those involved in the "scam."
"Vote theft is not just an electoral scam; it is a major betrayal committed against the Constitution and democracy. Let the nation's culprits hear this - times will change, punishment will surely be meted out," Rahul Gandhi said in a post on X.
On Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said 1,00,250 "fake votes" were created in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment in the Bangalore Central Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka to ensure a win for the BJP.
Taking reporters through a detailed presentation of the 'fraud' at the Congress headquarters in Delhi, the Leader of Opposition alleged that "collusion" had happened between the Election Commission of India and the BJP, which resulted in Prime Minister Narendra Modi securing his third term.
"Narendra Modi became Prime Minister with just a margin of 25 seats... Election Commission is helping BJP destroy the electoral system in India... The Election Commission is not giving us the data because of what we did in Mahadevpur (Karnataka Assembly constituency); if we do it in other Lok Sabha seats, then the truth about our democracy will come out. This is the evidence, criminal evidence (pointing to the physical voter list)," Rahul Gandhi said.
The Congress leader further alleged that the poll body is "destroying evidence" by only preserving CCTV and webcasting footage of the election process for 45 days after the whole process is completed, unless the election result is challenged in court.
Taking note of Gandhi's allegations of voter roll manipulations in a Karnataka Assembly segment, the State Chief Electoral Officer asked him to submit his evidence under oath.