'Once the opposition comes to power, we are coming after you': Key Rahul Gandhi quotes from 'Vote Chori' press meet against EC

The Election Commission is colluding with the BJP to destroy the election system in India, Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, alleged on Thursday.

Rahul Gandhi alleged that fake names were being added to voter lists to help the BJP win elections illegally. The model is being implemented across the country, and if the Election Commission (EC) has no role in it, they must come clean by providing the opposition with electronic voter lists from the past 10 to 15 years and CCTV footage from the recent polls. He claimed the EC is scared that if the opposition gets hold of the voter lists in electronic format, the "massive theft" will be caught in no time.

He visualised the analysis of data from a Lok Sabha constituency in Karnataka from the 2024 general elections to make his case.  and allege that the Election Commission is colluding with the BJP to "steal elections" and called it a "crime" against the Constitution. Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters, Rahul said the Congress put together a team and collected "concrete evidence of vote chori" in six months.

• "I'm telling people of India, the youngsters of India — the entire system is being stolen in front of you... What we are giving the nation is crystal clear proof that the only thing that matters for the poor people of this country is being stolen."

Rahul Gandhi during the press meet | X

• An election was lost due to the manipulation of the voter list. "As long as the EC or the voter list is compromised, EVMs or ballots will not make any difference. The point is not that Congress is losing and BJP is winning, we are seeing the election is rigged and the integrity of the elections is gone and there is a model how it is done."

• "There are going to be consequences for every election officer who is a part of this, no matter how senior or junior you are... Once the opposition comes to power, we are coming after you because we will not let you destroy the foundation of the democracy that our forefathers gave us. If the EC doesn't give us electronic voter data for the last 10-15 years and they don't give us the CCTV footage, they are partaking in the crime. Otherwise, they should give us the electronic voters list."

• "I think the judiciary needs to get involved; our democracy is gone if this is true." "This crime of 'election fraud' is being committed against Constitution, it is being done at huge scale across country..."

Rahul Gandhi addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters | Sanjay Ahlawat

• "If the media was on this side of the equation, they would have said, 'let us check what Rahul Gandhi has said'. Instead, they are saying I should swear an oath. The ball is now in the EC's court. Why can't they say it aloud and do it?"
  
  
  
• Maharashtra results confirmed our suspicion that assembly election was 'stolen'. "Our party had written a letter to the EC ahead of the polls saying that there are issues with the voters list ."
  
  
• The Prime Minister only needed to steal 25 seats to stay in power in 2024; BJP won 25 seats with margin less than 33,000 votes in Lok Sabha polls. Congress research found over one lakh duplicate voters, invalid addresses, bulk voters in Mahadevapura constituency in Karnataka.
  
  
• Our democracy does not exist; what is difference between us and other places... Not giving machine readable voter list convinced us that EC colluded with BJP to 'steal' elections in Maharashtra: Rahul Gandhi.