Congress MP and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, continued his attack on the Centre on Wednesday, stating that the theft of one’s vote amounts to the theft of one’s rights and identity. Sharing a fictional video on X, he depicted two individuals, purportedly from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), colluding with Election Commission officers to cast votes in another’s name.
In the video, the two are seen leaving a polling booth after allegedly casting fake votes, with one commenting, “This is such a good arrangement, victory is assured now.” When the real voter, a 50-year-old man named Garib Das, arrives with his voter ID to cast his ballot, he is told his vote has already been cast. His wife is similarly informed that her vote has been taken by someone else, forcing both to leave without voting. The video also shows the two individuals conspiring with the Booth Level Officer, mocking the Election Commission as the “Election Chori Aayog.”
Rahul Gandhi’s post came a day after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge chaired a meeting with party leaders, including Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Sachin Pilot, KC Venugopal, and Kumari Selja, to plan a nationwide campaign against alleged voter list manipulation and election fraud. On Tuesday, the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) marched from its headquarters in Delhi to Jantar Mantar to protest against the Election Commission, while Youth Congress activists held a ‘Halla Bol March’ in the capital, leading to several arrests.
Gandhi accused the ECI of failing in its duty to uphold the “One Man, One Vote” principle, asserting that the Congress will continue to protect the Constitution. On Monday, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and other INDIA bloc MPs were detained while marching from Parliament to the Election Commission’s office over alleged electoral irregularities in Bihar.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal took a veiled swipe at Union Home Minister Amit Shah following BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy’s victory in the Constitution Club of India (CCI) elections. Sibal remarked on X that “when the election is by secret ballot, the so-called Chanakya will lose hands down,” adding that if Bihar elections were fair, the same outcome would occur.
Rudy retained his post as Secretary (Administration) of the CCI despite 25 years of anti-incumbency, defeating fellow BJP MP Sanjeev Balyan, who secured only 290 votes. Rudy credited his panel, which included members from Congress, SP, TMC, and independents, for the win.
The CCI elections reflected significant opposition presence, with many positions going to INDIA bloc members. DMK MP Tiruchi Siva was elected cultural secretary unopposed, Congress’s Rajeev Shukla became sports secretary, and Jithender Reddy of Congress was elected unopposed as treasurer. Congress MP Deepinder Singh Hooda and SP MP Akshay Yadav also secured places in the governing council, alongside BJP’s Naveen Jindal and Pradeep Gandhi.
Rudy had the backing of RSP MP NK Premachandran, who also won a seat. Top leaders from both ruling and opposition parties, including Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Piyush Goyal, Sonia Gandhi, and Mallikarjun Kharge, cast their votes in the elections. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, however, maintained that the CCI elections were non-political and free from party-based campaigning.
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