Rahul Gandhi promises “black-and-white” exposé on poll fraud in Karnataka Lok Sabha seat

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has claimed that a “bhayankar chori” (huge theft) took place during the recent Lok Sabha election in a Karnataka constituency, and has promised to present "black-and-white" evidence to both the public and the Election Commission.

Speaking on July 23 following an internal review, he said the INDIA bloc has uncovered how the voter lists were manipulated, how new voters were added, and where the fraud occurred.

Gandhi explained that his team digitized the full voter list of one constituency after copying it from paper format. Although the process took six months, it revealed discrepancies including phantom voters, unexplained additions, and duplicated entries.

He warned that this was not limited to Karnataka and alleged similar irregularities had been found in Maharashtra, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh.

Highlighting specific anomalies, Gandhi noted that Maharashtra saw an influx of over one crore new voters, some of whom were reportedly ineligible, and accused the Election Commission of not providing necessary data—like electronic versions of voter lists or videography of the process—to verify the voters.

He claimed that the EC had even changed regulations to limit scrutiny.

He reiterated on social media that the INDIA bloc would pursue remedies both in Parliament and on the streets if electoral malpractice continued unchecked.

The announcement follows earlier allegations, most recently during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, where Gandhi accused the EC of acting as a complicit body in vote “theft.” 

The Election Commission has yet to respond specifically to Gandhi’s Karnataka claim. His allegations mark a hardening stance ahead of key state polls, with Congress and allies demanding transparency and robust oversight of voter roll updates and electoral safeguards.