Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is currently on a two-day visit to the United States, where he continued his usual approach of deflecting criticism by blaming the “system.” While addressing the Indian diaspora in Boston, Gandhi accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of being “compromised.”
He alleged that the electoral process in Maharashtra was manipulated to benefit the Bhartiya Janata Party-led Mahayuti Alliance, claiming, “Something is very wrong with the system.” Gandhi pointed to the Maharashtra elections as an example, alleging that 65 lakh voters were added to the voter turnout in just two hours, which he described as physically impossible.
Rahul Gandhi is a serial offender.
He has taken SUPARI against Indian institutions.
Every time he’s on foreign soil, in BJP Virodh he undertakes Badnami of Bharat.If he wins an election, ECI is fine. If he wins a court case,judiciary is fine.
Otherwise, he will abuse and… pic.twitter.com/XMXvx4WHDU
— Shehzad Jai Hind (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Shehzad_Ind) April 21, 2025
“It’s clear to us that the Election Commission is compromised,” he said. “More people voted in the Maharashtra Assembly elections than there are adults in Maharashtra. The ECI reported a figure for 5:30 pm, and between 5:30 pm and 7:30 pm, 65 lakh votes were cast. This is physically impossible. For a voter to vote, it takes about 3 minutes, which would mean lines of voters stretching until 2 am, but that didn’t happen.”
The BJP swiftly responded to Rahul Gandhi’s allegations against India’s democratic systems, with party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla launching a sharp attack. He said, “Rahul Gandhi is a serial offender. He has waged a campaign against Indian institutions. Every time he’s abroad, in his opposition to the BJP, he undermines India. When he wins an election, the Election Commission is fine. When he wins a court case, the judiciary is fine. But if he faces defeat, he insults and criticises these institutions. First, he claimed he would fight the Indian state, and now he is tarnishing India’s reputation.”
Notably, the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance secured a sweeping victory in the last Maharashtra Assembly elections, winning 235 out of 288 seats—delivering a major blow to the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), the coalition of Congress, NCP, and Shiv Sena (UBT).
The scale of this historic win appears to have rattled the Congress party, and Rahul Gandhi’s repeated attempts to revive the worn-out ‘Democracy in danger’ narrative seem to reflect that. His recent remarks questioning the integrity of India’s electoral process and the Election Commission—made while on foreign soil—raise serious concerns. Given these claims, it becomes essential to fact-check and debunk the misinformation surrounding the alleged discrepancies in the 2024 Maharashtra elections.
Rahul Gandhi Repeats Debunked Claims on Foreign Soil, Targets India’s Democratic Institutions
During his US visit, Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi once again launched a baseless attack on India’s democratic institutions, accusing the Election Commission of being “compromised.” His remarks—made on foreign soil—echo a familiar pattern of undermining electoral integrity whenever his party faces defeat.
This isn’t the first time such claims have surfaced. Following the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance’s historic win in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, opposition parties and their affiliated platforms, like The Wire, began alleging widespread EVM tampering and voter fraud instead of accepting the people’s mandate. The Wire had claimed that over 5 lakh “extra” votes were cast in the election, triggering a flood of conspiracy theories. However, these claims were thoroughly debunked by the Chief Electoral Officer of Maharashtra. The report from The Wire had conveniently omitted the 5.38 lakh valid postal ballots from its analysis. The CEO clarified that 6.40 crore votes were cast via EVMs, and when the postal ballots were added, the total matched the final count—debunking any claims of inflated numbers.
The CEO also addressed discrepancies in certain constituencies, explaining that in cases where EVM data couldn’t be validated—due to clerical errors or failure to clear mock poll data—those polling stations were excluded from VVPAT counting, in line with established Election Commission guidelines. Importantly, these exclusions didn’t impact results, as the margins of victory were significantly larger than the number of excluded votes.
On the issue of the sudden jump in voting percentage, the CEO clarified that the approximate 5 pm turnout was 58.22 per cent, rising to 66.05 per cent by the end of polling. This is a common trend in urban and semi-urban areas where voters tend to come out later in the day. Similar patterns were recorded during the 2019 elections. Moreover, early turnout figures are based on rough telephonic updates, while the final numbers are backed by official Form-17C data—verified by candidates’ counting agents.
Despite these facts, Rahul Gandhi had earlier claimed in Parliament that over 30 lakh voters were suspiciously added between the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2024 Assembly elections in Maharashtra. He also alleged EPIC number duplication. However, the Election Commission refuted this, stating that duplication of EPIC numbers does not necessarily indicate duplicate or fake voters.
To further reinforce transparency, the ECI pointed to the recent Special Summary Revision of the electoral rolls in January 2025. Out of nearly 9.7 crore registered voters, only 89 first appeals and one-second appeal were filed—demonstrating minimal dispute over the process. The revision ensures the addition of new voters, removal of deceased or duplicate entries, and correction of records under strict monitoring.
Nonetheless, opposition parties and self-styled journalist-turned-YouTubers used false narratives from The Wire to discredit the Election Commission and delegitimise the BJP’s electoral success. Rahul Gandhi, undeterred by repeated clarifications from the ECI, continues to pedal these discredited claims internationally, casting unwarranted doubt on India’s electoral credibility. His actions not only undermine India’s institutions but also damage the image of the country’s democracy on global platforms—all in pursuit of a political narrative that has repeatedly failed at home.
Rahul Gandhi’s Long History of Undermining India on Foreign Soil
Rahul Gandhi’s latest remarks during his US visit—questioning the integrity of the Election Commission of India—are not an isolated incident, but part of a well-established pattern. Time and again, the Congress leader has used his foreign tours not to promote India’s strengths, but to malign its democratic institutions, attack political opponents, and subtly seek international intervention in India’s internal affairs.
Rather than presenting a positive image of India abroad, Gandhi has frequently resorted to claiming “democracy is in danger,” meeting individuals linked to anti-India and anti-Hindu groups, and even engaging with foreign officials at questionable times. Notably, he held a secret meeting with Chinese officials even as India was locked in a tense border standoff with China—raising serious concerns about his political judgment.
Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party have also echoed narratives pushed by George Soros, a known Modi critic and regime change enthusiast. During his 10-day US tour in June 2023, Gandhi was seen with Sunita Vishwanath, co-founder of the Soros-linked group “Hindus for Human Rights”—an organisation known for pushing an anti-Hindu agenda under the guise of activism. The image surfaced during a talk hosted by the Hudson Institute.
From signing a controversial MoU with China’s Communist Party to cozying up with groups that promote Islamist propaganda, Gandhi’s pattern of mirroring anti-Modi rhetoric often aligns disturbingly with the positions of adversarial foreign governments—most notably Pakistan’s. This isn’t new. In April 2021, while speaking at Harvard Kennedy School, he urged the US establishment to speak out about India’s internal affairs. In 2022, at the “Ideas for India” conference in the UK, he again hinted at the need for foreign intervention—twice during a single speech. In 2023, he painted a bleak picture of India’s democracy during a lecture at Cambridge University, claiming the country was slipping into dictatorship under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. These repeated attempts to internationalise domestic politics haven’t gone unnoticed.
Now, by recycling debunked claims about the Election Commission being “compromised,” Gandhi appears to be deflecting blame for his party’s electoral failures. If Congress genuinely believed in the integrity of their accusations, they would have boycotted elections or presented credible evidence—rather than parroting discredited claims first floated by leftist propaganda platforms.
At the heart of this campaign seems to be a desperate attempt to signal to foreign powers that India’s democratic fabric is collapsing simply because the Congress and its allies cannot defeat the BJP at the ballot box. It echoes former Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar’s infamous appeal: “Unhe hataiye, humein laiye” (remove them, bring us). In doing so, Rahul Gandhi not only undermines public trust in Indian institutions but also sends a troubling message to the world—that his party’s return to power is worth sacrificing India’s image and sovereignty.
Comments