Rahul Gandhi Accuses EC of 'Gaslighting Citizens' in Maharashtra Civic Polls

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused the Election Commission of “gaslighting citizens” after claims surfaced that marker pens were used to ink voters’ fingers during Maharashtra civic polls, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election. “Election commission gaslighting citizens is how trust has collapsed in our democracy. Vote Chori is an anti-national act,” Rahul Gandhi said in a post on X.

The issue triggered a political row after opposition parties alleged the ink could be wiped off easily, raising concerns about the integrity of the polling process. State Election Commissioner Dinesh Waghmare rejected the allegations, saying marker pens have been used for local self-government elections in the state since 2011 and that the ink is indelible.

The BJP slammed Rahul's attack on the poll body and asked if he was 'accepting defeat' before the counting of votes ends. “Bahana brigade back! Accepting defeat before counting ends? Rahul Back to doing what he does best. Discredit, distort & disinform. Khandani chor now regurgitating claims of Thackerays. By the way what came out of allegations Rahul made on Bihar elections vote chori?” BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said in a post on X.

The BMC election, held after an eight-year gap, recorded a voter turnout of 52.94%, according to figures released by the SEC on Friday. Polling concluded on Thursday. The election for India’s richest municipal corporation was marked by allegations from the Shiv Sena (UBT)-MNS alliance, which were later denied by the SEC. The previous BMC polls were held in 2017, and the term of the last elected mayor, Kishori Pednekar, ended in March 2022.

The new election is expected to pave the way for Mumbai to get a mayor after nearly four years. According to the SEC, 54,76,043 voters cast their ballots out of 1,03,44,315 registered voters. The turnout included 29,23,433 men, 25,52,359 women, and 251 transgender voters across 277 wards. In absolute numbers, about 3.7 lakh more men voted than women.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis dismissed the controversy, alleging the opposition was preparing excuses for an expected defeat. “The Election Commission has used marker pens several times in the past. I feel some people are preparing to blame something for the result tomorrow,” he said.