Rahul Gandhi Accuses BJP-EC of ‘Vote Theft’ During Bihar Yatra

 Nalanda – Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday escalated his attack on the Election Commission (EC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging a “partnership” between the two to “steal votes” in Bihar. Addressing a rally in Nalanda on the third day of his Voter Adhikar Yatra, Gandhi warned that if people’s right to vote was taken away, their ration cards, land, and livelihoods would follow.

“The last Bihar Assembly elections were also stolen. When the truth comes out, the Election Commission should remember that our government will take action against them,” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha declared.

Gandhi claimed that an analysis by the Congress had uncovered over one lakh fake voters in a single Assembly segment of Bangalore Central, but the EC refused to address the issue and instead demanded an affidavit. “EC did not answer when we asked for a machine-readable voters’ list and videography. It is getting vote chori done,” he alleged.

He accused the poll body of deleting 65 lakh names in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. “We have started this yatra against vote chori. The poor of this country have only their vote left. If that is stolen, their ration card, their land, and everything will be taken away,” Gandhi said, with the crowd responding with the slogan ‘vote chor, gaddi chhor’.

Earlier in Nawada, Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the election commissioners of “snatching away” constitutional rights. “This country belongs to farmers, labourers, small traders, and the youth, not to billionaires like Adani and Ambani,” he said, adding that policies such as GST and demonetisation were designed to benefit a select few.

Standing atop his campaign vehicle alongside RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and CPI(ML) Liberation leader Dipankar Bhattacharya, Gandhi vowed that the opposition would not allow “vote theft” in Bihar. He reiterated his call to replace “Made in China” with “Made in India” and “Made in Bihar” as part of efforts to fight unemployment.

At the start of his address, Gandhi invited a local resident—whose name had been removed from the electoral rolls despite having served as a polling agent—to share his experience. “There are lakhs of such people in Bihar,” Gandhi said, accusing the BJP and EC of collusion.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav echoed the charge, saying: “Whenever the Lok Sabha elections are held in the future, we will make Rahul Gandhi the prime minister.” He warned that after “vote theft,” ration cards and pensions would also be taken away.

The Voter Adhikar Yatra, which began in Gaya, is being conducted in a hybrid mode—on foot and by vehicle—similar to Gandhi’s earlier Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra. On Tuesday, it passed through Wazirganj, Nawada, Sheikhpura, and Nalanda, where Gandhi also paid tribute to Bihar’s first chief minister, Krishna Singh. The yatra will resume from Nalanda on Thursday and cover districts including Lakhisarai, Bhagalpur, Purnea, Araria, Darbhanga, Champaran, and Siwan before concluding.