Rahul Gandhi’s recent article in The Indian Express, titled “Match-fixing Maharashtra,” is a desperate and baseless attempt to undermine the credibility of India’s electoral process, particularly the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections. As the founder of the Indian Forum for Democratic Dialogue, I am compelled to counter these unfounded allegations with facts, exposing Gandhi’s narrative as a political hit-job aimed at deflecting from the Congress party’s own historical failures.
The Myth of Election Commissioner Manipulation
Gandhi’s first charge—that the appointment of Election Commissioners under the BJP government reeks of “match-fixing”—is a deliberate misrepresentation. Prior to the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, the process relied solely on the Prime Minister’s recommendation with Cabinet approval, lacking structured oversight or opposition involvement. This opacity was exploited during Congress rule, with appointments like T.N. Seshan, who contested the 1999 Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket, and M.S. Gill, who later became a Minister in the UPA government, serving as clear instances of partisanship. The Shah Commission (1977) further criticized figures like Navin Chawla for authoritarian conduct under Indira Gandhi’s regime, highlighting Congress-era biases that Gandhi conveniently omits.
In a landmark move, the Supreme Court intervened in Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (2023), establishing a temporary committee with the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition (LoP), and the Chief Justice of India (CJI) to recommend appointments until Parliament legislated a new law. Responding to this directive, Parliament enacted the 2023 Act, which institutionalizes an inclusive selection panel comprising the Prime Minister, one Cabinet Minister, and the LoP. This reform replaces the previous executive-dominated arrangement, ensuring broader representation and transparency. Yet, Gandhi falsely portrays it as a BJP ploy, ignoring the Congress-led distortions of the past.
Voter Growth: A Natural Trend, Not a Conspiracy
Gandhi’s claim of “inflating the voter register with fake voters” in Maharashtra, citing a 9.7 crore voter base in the 2024 Assembly elections against an alleged 9.54 crore adult population, lacks grounding. No official census data since the 2011 census supports his population figure, rendering his comparison invalid and speculative. The observed increase of 72 lakh voters, representing an 8 per cent growth from the 8.98 crore registered voters in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections to 9.7 crore in the 2024 elections, aligns with natural demographic trends and robust registration drives such as the Nav Matdata Abhiyan launched post the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
To put this in perspective, voter growth is not unique to BJP-ruled Maharashtra. In Congress-ruled Telangana, the voter base grew by 13.2 per cent, adding 37 lakh voters from 2.80 crore in the 2018 Assembly elections to 3.17 crore in the 2023 Assembly elections. Similarly, in TMC-ruled West Bengal, the voter rolls expanded by 14.3 per cent, with an addition of 90 lakh voters, increasing from 6.29 crore in the 2016 Assembly elections to 7.19 crore in the 2021 Assembly elections. Additionally, in Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh, the voter population surged by 15.1 per cent, with an increase of 7.2 lakh voters, rising from 47.7 lakh in the 2017 Assembly elections to 54.9 lakh in the 2022 Assembly elections. These higher percentage increases in states governed by opposition parties, where BJP faced electoral defeats, decisively debunk Gandhi’s partisan narrative of voter list manipulation. His selective outrage, ignoring these comparable trends, exposes his hypocrisy and lack of substantive evidence.
Turnout Surge: A Sign of Democratic Participation
The allegation of a suspicious 76 lakh voter surge after 5 PM, raising turnout from 58.22 per cent to 66.05 per cent in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, is another fabrication. With 1,00,186 polling booths across the state, this averages to approximately 76 voters per booth voting in the last hour—well within operational capacity, as confirmed by Chief Electoral Officer S. Chockalingam in statements to The Hindu on November 29, 2024, and a detailed interview on December 1, 2024. Voting extended until 6 PM, with all voters inside the polling booth campus by that time allowed to cast their votes, a standard practice that often extends the process slightly beyond the official close. Historical data supports this: the 2023 Telangana Assembly elections, where BJP lost, saw a provisional turnout of 63.94 per cent at 5 PM rise to a final 71.35 per cent, a swing of 7.41 per cent; the 2023 Karnataka Assembly elections recorded a provisional 65.69 per cent at 5 PM climbing to 73.19 per cent, a 7.5 per cent increase; and the 2022 Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections showed a provisional 70 per cent at 5 PM reaching 74.05 per cent, a 4.05 per cent rise—all in non-BJP victories.
The 66.05 per cent turnout in 2024, bolstered by initiatives like the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana targeting women’s engagement, reflects genuine participation, not rigging. Moreover, the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra recorded a high voting turnout of 67.1 per cent, as noted in official records, further indicating a consistent pattern of robust voter engagement rather than any irregularity.
The 12,000-Booth Fantasy
Gandhi’s most outrageous claim—12,000 booths with 600 voters each after 5 PM (72 lakh total)—is a mathematical absurdity. This would imply zero voting in the remaining 88,186 booths, a preposterous notion debunked by uniform turnout patterns across the state. Chockalingam clarifies this as a natural surge, not a localized anomaly. Moreover, BJP’s 88.59 per cent strike rate in the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections mirrors past successes: Bihar 2010 Assembly elections (89.21 per cent), Uttarakhand 2017 Assembly elections (82.60 per cent), Uttar Pradesh 2017 Assembly elections (81.25 per cent), and Gujarat 2022 Assembly elections (85.71 per cent). Gandhi’s attempt to paint this as unusual fails under the weight of consistent electoral performance.
Kamthi Assembly Elections :Historical Context Exposes Gandhi’s Deceit
In Kamthi, Gandhi cites the 2024 Assembly election results (BJP 54.22 per cent with 1.74 lakh votes, INC 41.53 per cent) but omits historical context. BJP’s performance aligns with the 2009 Assembly elections (49.37 per cent) and the 2014 Assembly elections (53.96 per cent), with vote gaps over INC of 16.15 per cent and 17.03 per cent, respectively—higher than the 12.69 per cent gap in 2024. Worse, he falsely claims BJP got 1.19 lakh votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections here. False! Kamthi falls under the Ramtek (SC) Lok Sabha constituency, contested by SHS’s Raju Parwe. This deliberate misrepresentation underscores Gandhi’s reliance on fabricated data.
Rule 93 Amendment: Protecting Democracy, Not Undermining It
Gandhi’s attack on the Rule 93 amendment to the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, as “match-fixing” is a gross misrepresentation. Following the Punjab and Haryana High Court order on December 9, 2024, for full 2024 Haryana Legislative Assembly election data, the Election Commission (ECI) sought this change to safeguard voter privacy in insurgency-hit areas like Naxal regions. It restricts public access but allows candidates and courts scrutiny—balancing transparency with security. Gandhi’s selective narrative ignores this context, revealing his intent to mislead.
Aadhaar Linkage: Congress’ Hypocritical Resistance
The BJP’s push for voluntary Aadhaar-Voter ID linkage, per the 2021 Election Laws (Amendment) Act, aims to eliminate bogus voting. Yet, Congress leaders Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Manish Tewari opposed it in 2021 debates, citing privacy concerns, despite their states—Telangana and Himachal Pradesh—benefiting from significant voter growth. This hypocrisy undermines Gandhi’s credibility.
Time to expose the fake narrative of Congress
Rahul Gandhi’s article is a concoction of exaggerations and distortions, from Congress-era biases to fabricated booth numbers. The BJP, through ECI-backed reforms like the 2023 Act with the PM, a Cabinet Minister, and the LoP in the selection panel, and grassroots efforts, has strengthened Maharashtra’s electoral process, achieving a 66.05% turnout in the 2024 Assembly elections—a testament to democratic vitality. Gandhi’s attack is a political ploy, not a defense of democracy. India’s voters deserve facts, not fiction.
