Priyank Kharge Slams Election Commission Over Voter Fraud Claims in Bengaluru
In a fiery joint press conference in Bengaluru, Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge and Aland MLA B.R. Patil hit back at the Election Commission of India (ECI). They called the ECI’s recent clarifications on "vote chori" or voter fraud allegations a total lie, especially after Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi raised the issue.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Priyank Kharge didn’t hold back. "The ECI is acting like they uncovered and stopped this voter fraud themselves after Rahul Gandhi’s press conference. They’re saying they blocked voter deletions from the electoral rolls. That’s a complete lie," Kharge said.
He reminded everyone of their earlier efforts. "Back on February 11, 2023, in Kalaburagi, B.R. Patil and I exposed 6,670 fake online applications trying to delete names from the voters’ list."
Kharge went on to detail the timeline. On February 20, 2023, he wrote a formal letter to the Chief Election Commissioner in Delhi, flagging issues with the voter deletion process. Soon after, Kalaburagi Assistant Commissioner Mamata promised action. The very next day, February 21, an FIR was filed based on B.R. Patil’s complaint. It targeted the illegal attempt to remove 6,670 voters from the Aland constituency.
A quick probe backed their claims. The returning officer confirmed that out of 6,180 applications, only 24 were legit. The other 5,994? No voters had actually requested deletion. Officials admitted they had no clue how this happened. When they asked voters and Booth Level Officers (BLOs), nobody knew about these fake requests, Kharge pointed out.
Digging deeper into the tech side revealed more red flags. The mobile numbers used for these deletion requests came from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha. Kharge demanded a full investigation, saying officials needed OTPs, IP addresses, and other details to proceed. But he accused the Chief Election Commissioner of lying by claiming all info was already shared.
Kharge highlighted the Cyber Crime Division’s frustration. "They sent 18 letters over the last 18 months to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) asking for OTPs, mobile numbers, login details, IP addresses, and device IDs. They got zero responses," he said.
He questioned the ECI’s story even more. On February 4, 2025, the Karnataka CEO wrote to the ECI’s Principal Secretary, referencing letters from March 29, 2023, to January 19, 2025. "If the ECI says they shared everything, why did the Karnataka CEO keep sending letters? It’s clear the Election Commission is lying," Kharge fired.
Kharge also defended Rahul Gandhi. "Rahul never claimed voters’ names could be deleted online. He just said Form No. 7 was being misused for deletions. But the ECI is twisting his words with false accusations."
The ECI insists all documents were submitted by September 6, 2023. Kharge countered: "If that’s true, why write over 15 more letters after that? Rahul Gandhi asked tough questions, but it’s the BJP rushing to defend the ECI."
He named several BJP leaders jumping in: Sambit Patra, Gajendra Singh, P.C. Mohan, Dinesh, Keshav Prasad Maurya, Kishan Singh, Vishnu Deo Singh, and Ashok. "When B.R. Patil exposed this in 2023, both central and state governments were BJP-led. BJP officials wrote all these letters. So why is the ECI scared to share details now? It used to work independently, but today it looks like a puppet," Kharge slammed.
Both the central and state election commissions have misled everyone, he added. "They need to explain clearly. Why did the Karnataka ECI lie? That’s the big mystery."
Wrapping up, MLA B.R. Patil praised the efforts. "I thank Rahul Gandhi for spotlighting the Aland voter fraud on a national stage, and Priyank Kharge for standing with me."
This ongoing row over voter deletions and ECI transparency has sparked debates on election integrity in India, with calls growing for a thorough probe into the fake applications.
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