Kharge accuses ECI of obstructing voter fraud probe in Karnataka

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on 7 September launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission of India (ECI), accusing it of obstructing a criminal investigation into alleged large-scale voter fraud during the 2023 Karnataka assembly elections.

In a strongly worded social media post, Kharge questioned whether the constitutional body had effectively become the "back-office" of the ruling BJP for 'vote chori'.

Citing an investigative report shared on X, Kharge said that a case involving the fraudulent deletion of voter names through forged Form 7 applications has stalled, with the ECI allegedly withholding vital documents required for a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe ordered by the Congress-led state government.

“Is the Election Commission of India (ECI) now BJP’s Back-Office for #VoteChori?” Kharge wrote, using the Hindi phrase for vote theft.

Kharge laid out what he described as a “chronology” of events that led to the current impasse. According to him, ahead of the May 2023 elections, the Congress had uncovered systematic voter deletions in the Aland Assembly constituency, carried out through falsified Form 7 submissions—used to request the removal of names from the electoral roll.

“Thousands of voters were stripped of their rights through a very sophisticated operation of forging Form 7 applications,” he said.

He added that a formal complaint was filed in February 2023, and subsequent investigations uncovered 5,994 forged applications—providing, in his view, "clear evidence of a massive attempt at voter fraud."

Following these revelations, the Karnataka government ordered a CID probe to identify and prosecute those involved. While the ECI initially shared some relevant documents, Kharge claimed that the commission has since “stonewalled crucial information”—effectively derailing the investigation.

“But here’s the twist: while ECI had earlier shared part of the documents needed to trace the forgery, it has now stonewalled the crucial information—effectively shielding those behind Vote Chori!” Kharge pointed out.

In his post, the Congress chief posed a series of pointed questions aimed at the impartiality and intent of the Election Commission:

“Why has the ECI suddenly BLOCKED vital evidence? Who is it protecting? BJP’s Vote Chori department? Is the ECI bending under BJP pressure to derail the CID probe?”

Kharge concluded his post by underscoring the broader implications of the controversy, stressing that the right to vote is a fundamental democratic principle and must be upheld.

“Individual’s right to vote needs to be protected. INDIAN Democracy needs to be protected,” he asserted.

There was no immediate response from the Election Commission to Kharge’s allegations. However, the poll body has previously dismissed similar claims from the Congress as baseless and politically motivated.

This latest exchange has deepened the political divide ahead of upcoming state elections, with the Congress continuing to accuse the ECI of partiality and the BJP largely remaining silent on the matter.

(With PTI inputs)