ECI reads straight from BJP’s script, claims Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru, Aug 18 (IANS) Responding to the Election Commission of India (ECI)'s directive to the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, to file an affidavit in seven days or tender an apology regarding vote theft charges, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Monday that the ECI looked like it was reading straight from the BJP’s script.

Taking to social media X, CM Siddaramaiah stated on Monday, "The Election Commission of India (ECI) finally spoke - not out of duty, but because the Congress, the INDIA Alliance, the civil society, and even the Supreme Court forced it to. And when it did, the mask slipped. Instead of behaving like an impartial referee, the ECI looked like it was reading straight from the BJP’s script. Yesterday’s press conference didn’t answer questions raised by Rahul Gandhi - it only confirmed suspicions."

"The ECI’s press conference was shrouded in arrogance, as if we must be grateful that it chose to speak directly, instead of hiding behind nameless, faceless “sources”.

He said that what the country saw was not accountability, but an attempt to intimidate and deflect.

He pointed out that LoP Rahul Gandhi had shown serious mismatches in Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha constituency, using the ECI’s own data.

“From that one example, it is obvious that such anomalies exist in many other constituencies too. Instead of answering, the ECI tried to threaten the Opposition. The Chief Election Commissioner asked for affidavits and oaths, as if its own numbers need certification before they can be trusted. This is absurd,” he said.

He said that a responsible Commission would have taken the mismatch seriously, verified it, and explained it to the public.

“By refusing to do so, it has only strengthened the suspicion that it is working hand in glove with the ruling party. And when it claimed to be ‘impartial’ towards both ruling and opposition parties, it sounded less like truth and more like a bad joke, he said.

Siddaramaiah emphasised that the ECI’s dismissal of concerns about fake and duplicate voters was equally shocking. It brushed them aside, saying no one raised objections during the 45-day claims window, so the matter is closed.

He said that this is nothing but an excuse to escape responsibility. The truth is, it took time for Congress to expose these irregularities because the ECI itself made the data inaccessible.

"We had to dig through thousands of pages in just one assembly segment of Bengaluru Central to uncover the mismatches. If this is the situation in one seat, imagine the scale across the country. If irregularities come to light after elections, should the ECI ignore them? Its constitutional duty is to protect the integrity of every single vote, not to shut its eyes when the problem becomes visible later," he said.

Siddaramaiah said that the excuses given on machine-readable electoral rolls and CCTV footage were even weaker, adding that the ECI said searchable rolls could harm privacy.

“But electoral rolls are already public records. Political parties are not outsiders - they are part of the democratic process,” he said.

He further added that denying them full, verifiable data will not help in protecting privacy; it will only hide errors and fraud.

“And the so-called privacy excuse on CCTV footage is laughable. CCTV in polling booths exists to ensure transparency, not secrecy,” he said.

Siddaramaiah added that to destroy that record after just 45 days is not protecting voters; it is protecting wrongdoing.

“And the biggest questions were not answered at all. Why was the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) rushed in Bihar just months before elections and during floods? Why did Maharashtra suddenly record a surge of 70 lakh voters between the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections? Why did the Commission oppose Supreme Court directions that would have made the system more transparent and voter-friendly? Why has it taken no action on the evidence shown by Shri Rahul Gandhi? On every important issue, the ECI chose silence,” he pointed out.

He said that democracy depends on trust, and that trust is broken when the Election Commission dodges questions, intimidates the Opposition, and shields those in power.

“The people of India can see this clearly. No press conference or grand speech will cover up the truth,” he said.

Siddaramaiah said that the ECI’s job is to safeguard every citizen’s vote - until it does that honestly, its credibility will remain in doubt.