English
English
English
The MTA Speaks: A major question mark on the Election Commission; is trust in democracy eroding? Read the full analysis
Rahul Gandhi claims large-scale voter fraud in Haryana.
New Delhi: Wednesday was a highly discussed day in national politics amid the first phase of voting for the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections. Congress leader and Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi held a press conference at the Congress headquarters in Delhi and raised serious questions about the fairness of the electoral process. The Congress called the press conference "H-Files," and Rahul Gandhi alleged that widespread vote theft in the Haryana Assembly elections was not just a state problem but an example of institutional flaws in the electoral system.
Senior journalist Manoj Tibrewal Aakash provided an accurate analysis of Rahul's "H-Files" in his popular show, 'The MTA Speaks,'.
Wednesday was a highly discussed day in national politics amid the election fever in Bihar. Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Member of Parliament from Rae Bareli, held a press conference at the Congress headquarters in Delhi and once again questioned the fairness of the country's electoral process. The Congress symbolically titled the press conference "H-Files." Rahul Gandhi alleged that there was widespread vote theft in the last Haryana Assembly elections, and that this was not just a single state's fault but an example of institutionalized rigging in the electoral system.
Rahul Gandhi stated in the press conference that shocking names were included in the Haryana voter list, including the name of a Brazilian model. According to him, this clearly indicates that there were significant irregularities in the voter lists. He claimed that 521,000 fake voters, 93,174 illegal voters, and 192,000 bulk voters were created in Haryana, through which approximately 2.5 million votes were rigged. Rahul Gandhi also alleged that this entire process benefited the Bharatiya Janata Party and influenced the election results.
These serious allegations by Rahul Gandhi have not only raised questions about the functioning of the Election Commission but have also challenged the credibility of the country's democratic institutions. He said that this is not just a matter of one state, but it raises questions about electoral transparency across the country. He said that if a constitutional institution like the Election Commission cannot be trusted, the very foundation of democracy will be weakened.
The Congress party's strategy behind naming this issue "H-Files" clearly demonstrates its intention not to limit it to a single press conference but to elevate it to a major political issue in the upcoming elections. Rahul Gandhi described it as a conspiracy of "institutional vote theft" and stated that it was not the result of a single administrative error but a well-planned effort. Rahul Gandhi's press conference came just one day before the first phase of voting in the Bihar Assembly elections.
His statement, therefore, was not limited to Haryana; it became a topic of discussion from Bihar to national politics. His statement once again gave opposition parties a new opportunity to attack the central government over the "credibility of EVMs" and the "transparency of the voting process." The RJD-Congress alliance in Bihar has already been accusing the central government of misusing democratic institutions. Now, Rahul Gandhi's statement has further intensified that political debate.
Analysts say Rahul Gandhi's statement revives the opposition's old narrative of "distrust in EVMs." This is the same issue that the Congress and other opposition parties repeatedly raised before the 2019 general elections. But now, it is being presented as a broader electoral narrative by linking it to Haryana and Bihar. The opposition will try to incite public discontent by citing it as an example of the central government's "influence" on the democratic process.
Rahul Gandhi's statement that "vote theft occurred at the institutional level" indicates a serious distrust of the country's electoral system. India is the world's largest democracy, and its soul rests on a fair electoral system. If the fairness of that system continues to be questioned repeatedly, it will not only increase distrust between parties but also undermine the democratic trust of citizens.
The greatest asset of constitutional institutions like the Election Commission is their impartiality and credibility. When political parties raise questions about it, it creates a sense of unease and doubt among the public. Therefore, it is imperative that the Election Commission respond clearly and factually to these allegations to maintain the credibility of the democratic system.
The question also arises: has repeatedly raising doubts about the electoral process become a strategy for political gain? Because whenever the opposition faces defeat, the first thing it does is to question the EVMs and the voters.
