Why India’s polling monitor is facing a test of credibility
Getty ImagesThe Indian Election Commission (ECI), one of the most reliable public institutions in the world’s largest democracy, faces a test of reliability.
During the last few weeks, voter fraud and manipulation made a series of opposition allegations from the inconsistencies to election rolls. He rejected all of them.
Recently, the opposition leaders, who organized great protests against ECI, said that they were considering an objection movement to dismiss the Chief Election Commissioner. On the last day of the Mony session of the parliament, they did not take action until Thursday, and there is no number to see it right now.
Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi, the leader of India’s main opposition party congress, showed a dramatic increase in the political struggle in Bihar, and started a 16 -day march known as the voter Adhikar Yatra (Voter Rights March) in the state of Bihar. Bihar, who is ready to vote in an important state selection later this year, is in the midst of a warm discussion on the latest revision of election rolls.
Gandhi first accused the allegations of voting theft in August of publishing the 2024 general elections to the Bharatia Janata Party (BJP), which ruled ECI.
Using the detailed data from ECI’s own records, a parliamentary election zone in the southern state of Karnataka claimed that it was more than 100,000 counterfeit voters, including repeated voters, invalid addresses and collective records.
ECI repeatedly described the allegations as “wrong and misleading”. And BJP strongly rejected these allegations with leader Anurag Thakur promise The congress and the opposition came together to make these “unfounded claims” because they were waiting for a loss in Bihar.
Gandhi’s press conference was held with the increase in discussions in Bihar.
Special Intensive Revision (secret) took place between June and July, and ECI representatives visited Bihar’s 78.9 million voters for verification.
ECI says that this was done to update voters after more than 20 years, but the opposition leaders can deprive tens of thousands of people, especially immigrants who are necessary as evidence of the rush and challenging documentation.
After a draft of the updated list was published on August 1, a few reports, Including BBCEmphasized errors such as the photographs assigned against the names of the wrong gender and the names of people and the dead voters in rolls.
New draft rolls have 72.4 million names – 6.5 million less than before, the commission deficiencies contain repetitive, dead and immigrant voters. Those who believe that their names were shot in a wrong way were applied to appeal until 1 September.
AFP through Getty ImagesIn the meantime, the criticism has concentrated in the fact that ECI’s publication of 6.5 million people excluded from draft rolls.
The opposition parties questioned why the commission was putting physical copies scanned instead of skipped voters lists that could be read by the machine that can be confirmed independently by the analysts and political parties.
Finally, India’s upper court told ECI to publish a searched voter list and also specify the reasons for their exclusion.
The intervention of the court emphasized ECI’s “procedural failures” and should be seen as “rap in Knuckles” editorial He said in the leading Hindu newspaper.
ECI Nadir organized a weekend in the midst of the assembly criticism press conference August 17 to address some allegations.
He continued: “If you use terms such as voting theft and misleading citizens, what else would you like to insult the Indian Constitution?” Election commissioner Gyyaneh Kumar referring to Gandhi’s claims.
Authorized, the 2019 Supreme Court’s demand for voters’ lists read by the machine may affect the privacy of people, he said.
He also asked Gandhi to make a statement under the oath proving his claims or to apologize to the nation for his words.
However, instead of resting the issue, expressions led to more anger, some opposition politicians accused Kumar of either avoiding answering certain questions or making uncomfortable explanations.
Pawan Khera of the Congress Party said that at a press conference of Kumar’s press conference to BBC Hindi, the “hostile tone” “as if a BJP leader was talking”, he said.
Experts say that Gandhi’s claims or millions of new voters are added or removed from the rolls in Bihar.
“When the list of voters is intensely confirmed, such great differences will emerge.” He said.
Mr. Gopalaswami added that when the election roll was revised in 2008 for the province of Southern Karnataka, approximately 5.2 million voters were removed and approximately one million people applied to re -add them.
He also accepted ECI’s request by Gandhi by Gandhi and said that responding to allegations without a written complaint was a bad precedent for the institution.
Getty ImagesHowever, as Gandhi’s voter rights walk and Bihar elections approach, it is unlikely that the issue will die.
“No matter what the election commission says, the opposition will definitely make a problem in the upcoming Bihar elections,” his senior journalist Smita Gupta told Hindi. He said.
In the meantime, there are greater concerns about the impact of all these on the trust of the people on ECI.
“The trust of ECI once commanded by ECI once a larger public opinion investigation,” former chief election commissioner Sy Quraishi Indian Express, ”
Authorized, “Although the procedure architecture for transparency in the elections is in place … Perception of impartiality is as important as the reality. This trust is as important as providing technical accuracy,” he added.
However, according to a survey published by Lokniti this month, a research program at the Development Society Research Center (CSDs) fell sharply against ECI.
Sanjay Kumar, the chief of the agency, published an apology to share false data about the participation of voters in Mahashtra after ECI and BJP’s plus signs, but his findings in other states point to an increasing confidence deficit with ECI.
In the six states investigated by CSDS in 2025, the number of people who did not trust EC had sharply increased since 2019 – the most populous state of India increased from 11% to 31% in Uttar Pradesh.
This systematic erosion, Mr. Gambling Wired “There must be a great concern for the commission news portal.
Kumar, “not only the confidence of the falling opposition, but also among the falling people. Data clearly show this.” He said.
