What punishment will Rahul Gandhi face for 'false' oath to EC on 'vote chori' claims?

The Election Commission has responded to the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi's accusations of 'vote chori' in recent elections and has challenged him to file an oath on false electors in the voter list. As per the oath, Gandhi could face jail if his claims are found 'false'.

Responding to Gandhi's claims, the chief electoral officer for Karnataka said electoral rolls are being prepared in a transparent manner. The Commission, sharing a copy of an oath, asked the Opposition leader to file it with details of electors included or excluded in the list.

"It is understood that during a press conference held today, you had mentioned about the inclusion of ineligible electors and exclusion of eligible electors in the Electoral Rolls. You are kindly requested to sign and return the enclosed Declaration/Oath under Rule 20(3)(b) of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, along with the name(s) of such elector(s) so that necessary proceedings can be initiated," it said.

 

What did Rahul Gandhi say about fake voters in electoral roll?

The Congress leader conducted a press meet in Karnataka on Thursday and charged there were irregularities in the electoral rolls of the recently held polls. Gandhi charged that the poll body was working in collusion with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to destroy the election system in India.

Gandhi, citing the Lok Sabha polls to Bangalore Central constituency as an example, analysed voter data from seven assembly segments under it and said the BJP won the seat with a margin of 32,707 votes. The Congress leader said that while the Congress won six out of seven segments, it lost in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment in which it was defeated by over 1,14,000 votes.

The Congress leader charged "vote chori" of 1,00,250 votes in the constituency with 11,965 duplicate voters in one assembly segment, 40,009 voters with fake and invalid addresses, 10,452 bulk voters or single address voters, 4,132 voters with invalid photos and 33,692 voters misusing Form 6 of new voters.

Rahul Gandhi has been asked to sign an under  Rule 20 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, regarding inclusion and exclusion of names from the list. 

As per oath, making a false declaration in connection with the electoral rolls is punishable under Section 31 of the RP Act, 1950. Giving false evidence is punishable under Section 227 of the Bhartiya Nyaya Samhita, 2023. Gandhi has been asked to declare, "I am not/ I am an elector of the said constituency, I have personal knowledge relevant to this case and am making this statement voluntarily."

Will Rahul Gandhi face disqualification if EC finds his oath on 'vote chori' claims fake?

Under Section 31 of the Representation of People Act, 1950, if a person makes false information regarding preparation, revision or correction of an electoral roll, or  the inclusion or exclusion of any entry in or from an electoral roll, "a statement or declaration in writing which is false and which he either knows or believes to be false or does not believe to be true, he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both."