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LS polls in Karnataka ‘stolen’, we found out EC’s ‘game’: Rahul Gandhi

admin | July 23, 2025 11:21 PM CST

New Delhi: After Maharashtra and Haryana Assembly polls, top Congress leader Raul Gandhi on Wednesday claimed that the Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka was "stolen" and the Congress has unearthed the modus operandi, prompting the Election Commission to change it in Bihar.

He first made the charge during a brief interaction with reporters at Parliament House and later posted the allegations on 'X', promising to provide details before the public soon. "Elections are being stolen in India, this is the truth. We showed everyone how match-fixing happened in Maharashtra. We investigated one Lok Sabha seat in Karnataka -- large-scale vote theft was found, we will soon bring it before the public," he said on 'X'.

"In Bihar, votes of SC, ST, OBC, and minority brothers and sisters are being stolen in the name of Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. We will not sit quietly. The I.N.D.I.A. bloc alliance will fight the battle for people's rights from Parliament to the streets," he said. Earlier in the day, Rahul wearing a black shawl joined an I.N.D.I.A. bloc protest against the SIR in Parliament House along with other Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav. Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned owing to protests by the Opposition on the issue. Asked about the protest against SIR, he said it is not just the case of Bihar and alleged that there was "cheating" in Maharashtra too where the EC had refused to voters' list and video-recording of the polling process. The EC had earlier denied any wrongdoing in Haryana and Maharashtra elections. "We did some research in Karnataka. We found that the Lok Sabha election in Karnataka was stolen. I can show you in black and white. We can show that to the EC. When they understood we've found out their game, they have changed theirs," he told reporters in Parliament House. Rahul said they chose a constituency in Karnataka and collected voters' lists from all polling stations. "The problem is they give the voters' list on paper. We can't analyse such voters' lists. So we collected the voters' list and we digitilised it. It took six months and we unearthed their system like who casts their votes, how voters are enrolled and all came out," he claimed. Rahul, however, did not provide details about the constituency or other details. In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Congress won nine seats, up from one, while BJP got 17 and JD(S) 2. BJP had won eight seats less compared to the 2019 elections. 2019 Lok Sabha polls BJP: 25 seats with 51.38% vote share Congress: 1 seat with 31.88% vote share JD(S): 1 seat with 9.67% vote share 2024 Lok Sabha polls BJP: 17 seats with 46.35% vote share Congress: 9 seats with 45.64% vote share JD(S): 2 seats with 5.63% vote share