Gandhi alleged massive voter fraud in favour of the BJP in the 2024 Parliament election. He said the Form 6, used for adding new voters, was widely misused.
Published Aug 07, 2025 | 3:33 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 07, 2025 | 4:48 PM
Rahul Gandhi cited the example of a 70-year-old Karnataka woman to establish his allegation of the misuse of Form 6.
Synopsis: Rahul Gandhi alleged widespread manipulation of the electoral roll in Karnataka, which helped the BJP in the elections. He said the Election Commission was helping the BJP and destroying the election system.
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Karnataka refused to comment on Lok Sabha Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi’s allegation of irregularities in the electoral roll, which he claimed the BJP had committed in connivance with the Election Commission.
Speaking to South First, CEO V Anbukkumar said he would consider issuing a statement after receiving a memorandum from the Congress on Friday, 8 August.
“If something is there from our side, we will let you know. Tomorrow we are getting a memorandum, and we will get the details then. If we have to say anything, we will definitely say it through our press release,” he said on Thursday, 7 August.
The CEO has asked Gandhi, expected in Bengaluru on Friday, to submit evidence substantiating his allegation of electoral roll manipulation.
Earlier, Gandhi alleged massive voter fraud in favour of the BJP in the 2024 general election. He said the Form 6, used for adding new voters, was widely misused.
The Congress leader cited the example of a woman whose name figured on the list of two booths, and both her votes were cast.
Identifying the woman as 70-year-old Shakun Rani, Gandhi said he was not sure if the voter herself had cast both votes. He said it was possible that someone else could have cast the vote.
Gandhi last week said he had an ‘atom bomb’ on vote chori (vote theft). He, however, did not elaborate.
On Thursday, he held a news conference in New Delhi and alleged a nexus between the BJP and the Election Commission of India.
Gandhi said a probe by the Congress also found over one lakh fake and invalid addresses in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura. The BJP had defeated the Congress in Mahadevapura in the 2023 Assembly election.
He said the Election Commission was helping the BJP, and thereby destroying the election system.
Responding to Gandhi’s allegation about the ‘theft’ of 1,00,250 votes in Mahadevapura, BJP MP PC Mohan said the Opposition Leader had “insulted the people of Bengaluru Central, especially thousands of Hindus who voted for the BJP”.
“To him, any minority-heavy seat must belong to the Congress. The problem is not fraud. The problem is the verdict,” Mohan, who represents Bengaluru Central in the Lok Sabha, said on X.
In another post, he said, “When Hindus vote BJP, it’s called fraud. When minorities vote Congress, it’s called secularism. This hypocrisy won’t fool voters anymore.”
Mohan further clarified that the “BJP didn’t win Mahadevapura through manipulation. We won because Hindus voted decisively against dynasty, appeasement, and entitlement. Rahul Gandhi must learn: minority-dominated constituencies are not Congress property. The voter is supreme. Accept the mandate.”
(With inputs from Nolan Patrick Pinto in Bengaluru).
