EC invites Rahul Gandhi to discuss ‘all issues’ with Maharashtra elections

“…similar issues were raised by the Indian National Congress (INC) after the assembly elections in November 2024. The Commission had given a detailed reply to the INC on 24th December 2024…All elections are conducted by the Election Commission of India strictly as per electoral laws passed by Parliament, rules made therein and instructions issued by the ECI from time to time,” the EC wrote to Gandhi.

It added that the elections are conducted in a decentralised manner at the level of Assembly constituencies. In the case of Maharashtra, the EC said it had appointed 1,00,186 booth-level officers, 288 electoral registration officers, 139 general observers, 41 police observers, 71 expenditure observers and 288 returning officers. In addition, political parties appointed 1,08,026 of their booth-level agents, of which 28,421 were of the Congress.

“We presume that any issue regarding conduct of elections would already have been raised through election petitions filed in the competent court of law by the INC candidates. However, if you still have any issues, you are welcome to write to us and the Commission is also willing to meet you in person at a mutually convenient date and time to discuss all issues,” the EC wrote.

In his opinion piece, Gandhi had reiterated his earlier allegations of “bogus” voters being added to the electoral rolls ahead of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections and alleged “match-fixing”.

Speaking to The Indian Express on Tuesday, Congress leader and member of the eight-member Empowered Action Group of Leaders and Experts (EAGLE) Praveen Chakravarty said that the Congress will send an appropriate response to the letter within a day or two.

“There was a letter written by a secretary in the secretariat of in the Election Commission of India to the LOP. This was before the crash of the Air India flight in Ahmedabad. The letter is being reviewed and the appropriate people within the party will be responding in exactly a day or two. There is a meeting of the EAGLE committee on Wednesday and a press briefing will be held by us,” said Chakravarty.

The eight-member EAGLE was constituted by the Congress in February this year to keep a “bird’s eye view” of elections in the country and “monitor the conduct of free and fair elections by the Election Commission of India”. The EAGLE reports to Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.