‘Outdated Or Misinterpreted Voter Data’: UP Chief Electoral Officer Dismisses Rahul Gandhi’s Claims

Last Updated:August 08, 2025, 12:28 IST

Rahul Gandhi named two voters allegedly registered in multiple constituencies. UP's Chief Electoral Officer refuted the allegations with data

LoP in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addresses a press conference at AICC HQ, in New Delhi on August 7. (Image: PTI/Salman Ali)

Rahul Gandhi and the Election Commission of India (ECI) have come face to face in Uttar Pradesh after the Congress leader levelled explosive allegations of voter duplication and electoral fraud. Accusing the poll body of colluding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Gandhi named two voters allegedly registered in multiple constituencies. UP’s Chief Electoral Officer promptly refuted the allegations with verifiable data.

Voter fraud model at play, says Rahul Gandhi

At a press conference on Thursday, Gandhi launched a scathing attack on the Election Commission, unveiling what he termed a “nationwide voter theft model". Armed with a 22-page document and a 71-minute presentation, he claimed that the ECI had failed to curb large-scale duplicate registrations. He cited two individuals—Aditya Srivastava and Vishal Singh—who, according to him, were registered to vote in multiple constituencies across different states, including Varanasi and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, as well as in Karnataka and Maharashtra.

“These are not isolated cases. This is a national model of vote theft," said Gandhi, further claiming that one lakh suspicious or duplicate votes were found in Mahadevapura, Bengaluru alone. He also alleged the existence of 40 lakh “mysterious voters" added to the rolls in Maharashtra within just five months before the last election. According to him, the absence of access to machine-readable rolls had forced his team to conduct a painstaking manual verification over six months.

Citing specific examples, he stated that Aditya Srivastava (EPIC No. FPP6437040) appeared in Mumbai’s Jogeshwari East, Bengaluru’s Mahadevapura, and Lucknow East constituencies, while Vishal Singh (EPIC No. INB2722288) was listed both in Mahadevapura and Varanasi Cantt.

UP CEO counters allegations with verifiable data

Hours after the press conference, Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa issued a sharp rebuttal. He claimed that a thorough cross-check on the ECI portal dated August 7, 2025, showed no such duplication. Rinwa stated that both Aditya Srivastava and Vishal Singh were listed only in Mahadevapura, Bengaluru Urban (Assembly 174), with no entries in Lucknow East, Varanasi Cantt, or Mumbai.

“There is no trace of either name in the voter rolls of Lucknow East or Varanasi Cantt. Aditya Srivastava is not registered in Mumbai’s Jogeshwari East either," Rinwa said, calling Gandhi’s data “outdated or misinterpreted".

Political reactions

The political fallout was swift. UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya mocked the Congress leader in a social media post, saying, “The statement by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was expected to be an atom bomb, but its echo wasn’t even as loud as Diwali crackers—just smoke and illusion."

In contrast, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Dimple Yadav backed Gandhi, asserting, “He has raised a valid concern. We have seen electoral malpractices in past by-elections in UP. These issues must not be brushed aside."

Karnataka CEO, ECI issue responses

Responding separately, the Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer urged Rahul Gandhi to file a formal affidavit under Rule 20(3)(b), listing the names and EPIC numbers of the alleged duplicate voters. Only then, the official stated, could a proper inquiry be initiated.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India posted clips of Gandhi’s press conference on X (formerly Twitter), labelling them “misleading". Though a detailed clarification was not issued, the ECI indicated that legal action might be considered if unsubstantiated claims continued to be made.

Despite the rebuttals, the Congress party doubled down on its charge. Gandhi maintained that the refusal to share machine-readable electoral rolls was deliberate, adding that the printed rolls were manually cross-verified using internal tools, with enough documentation “to fill a seven-foot-tall pile".

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August 08, 2025, 12:28 IST

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