Our democracy is based upon free and fair elections. The agency responsible and empowered for keeping our elections honest and free of political interference is the Election Commission of India. They have a sacred duty towards the Constitution and the people of India.

Shri Rahul Gandhi’s presentation about how the election in a constituency in Karnataka was compromised in the last Lok Sabha elections has raised serious questions about the quality of our voter list and the impartiality of the Election Commission. He showed how fake voters were added in bulk and genuine voters were deleted, effectively stealing the election from the Congress candidate. Perhaps, more shocking is that the Election Commission has refused to engage in a conversation about what has happened. They refuse to provide answers, they show no signs of holding those responsible to account, and they are offering no answers about how to ensure this does not happen again. Instead, they are undertaking a grossly anti-democratic exercise called the SIR (Special Intensive Revision) in Bihar which is sure to rob lacs of citizens their right to vote in the upcoming election. It appears increasingly that the Election Commission is acting as the agent of the ruling Party.

The guarantee of a free and fair election where the will of the people is honestly recorded in the form of a vote, is the foundation upon which India’s democracy stands. If this guarantee of a free and fair election is compromised, the peoples’ belief in our democracy itself comes under attack. Rahul ji’s mission against ‘Vote Chori’ is not just about one election result. It is a mission to save the very foundations of our democracy. It is the duty of every Indian to stand with the Congress in this mission.

Jai Congress. Jai Hind. Jai Jagat.