In USA, Rahul Gandhi says poll body ’compromised’ in India; BJP hit back

mangaloretoday.com

Boston, April 21, 2025: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the Election Commission of India, calling it "compromised" and alleging that there is something "very wrong with the system."

Addressing the Indian community in Boston during his official visit to the United States, the Leader of Opposition used the example of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections to substantiate his claims, asserting that the voter turnout figures were inexplicably inflated in a matter of hours. However, the BJP clamped down on his remarks, accusing the Rae Bareli MP of suffering from "entitled child syndrome".

Gandhi alleged that the number of people who voted in Maharashtra exceeded the number of adults in the state. "More people voted in the Maharashtra Assembly elections than there are adults in the state of Maharashtra. The Election Commission provided us with a voting figure for 5:30 pm, and between 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm, 65 lakh voters cast their votes. This is physically impossible to happen," he said.

He added that at an average of three minutes per vote, the numbers would have required polling stations to remain open till 2 am - something that didn’t happen.

Further questioning the transparency of the process, Gandhi said, "When we asked them for the videography, they not only refused but they also changed the law so that now we are not allowed to ask for the videography."

The Congress leader’s remarks are the latest in what has become something of a pattern - taking aim at the BJP and the poll body, including BJP’s alleged misuse of the Election Commission while on foreign soil. In his address, he described the Commission as "compromised" and insisted that "something is very wrong with the system". He added, "I have said this multiple times."

Following the 2024 Maharashtra polls, the Maha Vikas Aghadi - comprising the Congress, Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), and Sharad Pawar’s NCP - had accused the Election Commission of voter list manipulation. The Commission dismissed these allegations as "misleading" and "factually incorrect".

Gandhi’s fresh criticism of the poll body prompted a furious response from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which accused him of tarnishing India’s democratic image abroad.

BJP leader Jaiveer Shergill said, "Rahul Gandhi suffers from ECS - Entitled Child Syndrome. Insulting the nation and blaming Indian democracy to cover his failures is his addiction. He vents his political frustration on foreign soil."

BJP leader Pradeep Bhandari called Gandhi "anti-democracy, anti-India", adding that he questions the country’s electoral process from abroad because he "could not win the trust of the Indian electorate". Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused Gandhi of having a pattern of maligning Indian institutions, including the Constitution and judiciary, whenever he travels abroad.