The rally is being organised under the INDIA bloc’s initiative but without its official banner. (Photo: PTI)
Over 300 MPs from 25 Opposition parties will march from Parliament to the Election Commission of India (ECI) headquarters in Delhi on Monday. The protest is against alleged “vote chori” in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar.
Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress (TMC), DMK, AAP, Left parties, RJD, NCP (SP), Shiv Sena (UBT), and National Conference are among the parties set to participate. The march will begin at 11:30 am from Parliament’s Makar Dwar.
ALSO READ: Karnataka CEO Challenges Rahul Gandhi to Prove Voter Fraud Claim
However, the Delhi Police is unlikely to allow the rally to reach the EC office, which is less than two kilometres away. A senior officer told Hindustan Times, on condition of anonymity, that no formal request for permission has been made.
The rally is being organised under the INDIA bloc’s initiative but without its official banner. This decision aims to accommodate AAP, which exited the alliance last month but still has 12 MPs in Parliament.
“This is a programme of the Opposition and we expect AAP to join it,” TMC MP Sagarika Ghose said. A senior Opposition leader revealed that the TMC played a major role in persuading AAP to participate.
Protesters will carry posters and banners in English, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, and Marathi. The aim is to oppose the Bihar SIR process and highlight the “vote theft” allegations.
On Sunday, Congress launched a web portal for citizens to support the cause and demand accountability from the EC. It urges the release of digital voter rolls.
“Vote Chori is an attack on the foundational idea of ‘one man, one vote’. A clean voter roll is imperative for free and fair elections,” Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi posted on X.
ALSO READ: Rahul Gandhi Declares War on ‘Voter Theft’, Warns Election Commission: “We’re Coming for You”
“Our demand from the EC is clear — be transparent and release digital voter rolls so that people and parties can audit them. The fight is to protect democracy.”
Last week, Gandhi alleged that more than 100,000 votes were “stolen” in the Mahadevapura assembly segment in Karnataka’s Bangalore Central constituency during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
“We started examining the details and discovered that approximately 1,00,250 votes were stolen in the Mahadevapura assembly,” he said at a press conference.
The Election Commission has rejected his claims as “incorrect” and urged him to submit the alleged data under oath.
The march signals a rare show of Opposition unity, with parties setting aside political rivalries to take on the EC over electoral transparency.
MUST READ: Election Commission Fact-Checks Rahul Gandhi’s Voter Fraud Allegation
