O P Rawat, ex- Chief Election Commissioner of India welcomed the EC’s press conference on Bihar’s electoral rolls, calling it a positive step.
He dismissed voter fraud as “negligible” because of strict verification and indelible ink employed by the poll body.
Ex-Poll Body Chief Rawat Welcomes EC’s Clarification on Bihar Electoral Rolls, Stresses Impartiality
Hailing the Election Commission's Sunday briefing, Rawat dismissed Rahul Gandhi's allegations of voter fraud and asked Gandhi to either provide proof for his claims or apologise.
Summary
Former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) O P Rawat described the Election Commission as “impartial” and welcomed its press conference aimed at clearing doubts over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar.
He declined to weigh in on the controversy around Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of “vote theft,” noting that he had not heard the Commission’s remarks during Sunday’s briefing.
The press conference was the first by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar after Gandhi accused the Commission of “vote chori”, with opposition leaders also raising concerns about the SIR process in Bihar. Kumar asked the Congress MP to either apologise or support his claims with a signed affidavit, as required under electoral rules.
Rawat emphasized that the poll panel works in an “impartial” manner. “The Election Commission’s press conference should be welcomed because it is a good step to clear public doubts regarding the SIR process (in Bihar) and other issues,” he said in Indore.
When asked about demands for publishing the electoral rolls again, Rawat responded that since final rolls are already public, such requests were not unreasonable. “Getting one’s name enrolled in the electoral roll strengthens democracy. Privacy is not an issue here. It arises only when personal details of voters are shared with individuals having vested interests,” he noted.
On the issue of voter fraud, Rawat said the chances of a person casting more than one vote are “negligible” due to strict checks at polling stations, including identity verification and the application of indelible ink on voters’ fingers.
(with inputs from PTI)
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