The political storm over alleged voter fraud escalated as the Opposition bloc INDIA is considering moving an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. The move comes amid mounting allegations of “vote theft” by the Election Commission, which the Opposition claims was carried out in collusion with the ruling BJP.

Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi recently accused the Election Commission of orchestrating large-scale voter manipulation in Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Haryana. Gandhi alleged irregularities such as duplicate entries, voters with house number zero, and instances where 80 voters were registered at the same address. He also claimed that BJP secured victory in the Lok Sabha elections due to 1,00,250 “stolen” votes in the Mahadevapura assembly segment of Bangalore Central.

Under Article 324(5) of the Constitution, a CEC can only be removed through a process similar to that of a Supreme Court judge, requiring a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament—numbers the Opposition currently does not possess. Commenting on the possibility of an impeachment motion, Congress leader Syed Naseer Hussain said, “Whatever weapon is available in a democracy, whatever we can use under the rules, we will use it if needed.”

Responding to these allegations, CEC Gyanesh Kumar strongly refuted the claims, calling Gandhi’s presentation a “wrong analysis” of voter data. Without naming the Congress leader, Kumar asserted that the Election Commission stands firm and impartial for all voters. He issued a seven-day ultimatum to Gandhi, demanding either an affidavit to substantiate his allegations or an apology to the nation.

“An affidavit will have to be given or an apology should be made to the country. There is no third option,” Kumar declared, adding that failure to provide proof would render the allegations baseless.

Kumar further dismissed claims of inflated voter lists, citing that the Congress itself won the Mahadevapura seat during the Karnataka assembly polls in 2023. He reiterated that repeated false claims cannot alter facts: “If you keep saying anything 10 times, 20 times, it does not become true. The sun rises only in the east.”

Rahul Gandhi, however, stood by his accusations, criticizing the CEC for selectively targeting him while ignoring similar statements by BJP leaders. “The Election Commission asks for an affidavit from me. But when Anurag Thakur says the same thing that I am saying, it does not ask for an affidavit from him,” Gandhi said.

The row continues to deepen, setting the stage for a fierce political and legal showdown in the coming days.