Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Congress on Saturday accused the ruling BJP of orchestrating large-scale “vote chori” (vote theft) in the state, alleging the presence of thousands of fake and duplicate entries in the electoral rolls.
State Congress president Amit Chavda claimed that the party’s review of voter lists revealed a recurring pattern of “one person, multiple votes.” He said the alleged manipulation was most evident in the Navsari Lok Sabha constituency, represented by Gujarat BJP chief and Union minister C.R. Patil.
According to Chavda, a detailed check of the Choriyasi Assembly segment in Navsari revealed serious discrepancies. Out of 6,09,592 registered voters, the Congress said it examined about 40% of the entries and found nearly 30,000 to be “duplicate, fake or suspicious.”
“If one constituency shows such a scale of fraud, imagine how democracy is being undermined across Gujarat. Questions are now being raised about C.R. Patil’s record victories in past elections,” Chavda said.
Duplicate IDs and inflated rolls
The Congress leader alleged that in several cases, the same voter’s name appeared multiple times, sometimes with minor spelling variations. In other instances, individuals were allegedly found with more than one voter ID, or the same person was listed in different languages to mask duplication.
Chavda also alleged that changes of address were being misused to artificially inflate voter rolls. “This is not an error in records—it is a conspiracy to finish democracy,” he said.
The Congress has demanded a thorough verification of Gujarat’s electoral rolls and vowed to continue exposing what it described as systematic “vote theft.” The BJP has yet to issue a response.
The Political Context
Chavda’s accusations come as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is leading the ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in poll-bound Bihar, alongside INDIA bloc allies such as the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The yatra, launched on August 17 from Sasaram in Rohtas district, aims to protest against the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. It will conclude in Patna on September 1.
So far, the campaign has covered several districts including Gaya, Nawada, Sheikhpura, Lakhisarai, Munger, Katihar, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Sitamarhi, Muzaffarpur, Purnea, West Champaran, Gopalganj, East Champaran, and Siwan.
During a rally in Motihari, Rahul Gandhi sharpened his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “I am accusing the PM of vote chori daily, but why is he maintaining a stoic silence? Because he has been caught; he is exposed now. The response to our yatra in Bihar has left the PM shaken,” Gandhi said.
Both the BJP and the Election Commission have dismissed the allegations. The poll panel chief has asked Rahul Gandhi to either back his claims with a signed affidavit, as required under electoral rules, or issue an apology.
