New Delhi: On Wednesday, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, held a press conference in New Delhi alleging massive electoral irregularities in Haryana. He termed the dossier of evidence his party has collected as “H-files”. In response, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ministers strongly challenged the claims, calling them baseless and politically motivated.
Gandhi’s allegations
Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI) of orchestrating what he described as “vote chori” (vote theft) in Haryana. He claimed that 25.41 lakh entries in the state’s electoral roll are fake. He asserted “one in eight voters” in Haryana are not genuine.
He alleged that for the first time in Haryana’s history the postal vote result diverged from booth-level outcomes, and he pointed to several instances of what he called duplication, bogus addresses and multiple registrations.
One striking example he cited: a photograph of a woman—claimed by Gandhi to be of a Brazilian model—which appears repeatedly (22 times) at ten different booths in Haryana under different names such as “Sweety”, “Seema”, “Saraswati”. He said this suggests a “centralised operation”.
Gandhi also showed a video of Nayab Singh Saini, the current Haryana Chief Minister, allegedly saying two days after the election: “We have all the resources… we will win.” Gandhi said this reinforced his suspicion of pre-determined outcomes.
BJP & government response
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju responded sharply to Gandhi’s presser. He said: “It clearly shows there is nothing left for him in Bihar, so to divert attention, he is now bringing up the issue of Haryana… He even mentioned the name of a foreign woman.”
Rijiju added that Gandhi’s overseas travels — citing Cambodia, Thailand and Colombia — indicate he brings “ideas from abroad… and they prepare these baseless narratives, wasting everyone’s time”. He urged politicians to “talk about serious issues, not indulge in such futile matters”.
The press conference intensifies the confrontation between Congress and the BJP ahead of upcoming elections. Gandhi’s assertion that a large-scale manipulation of voter lists and outcomes took place in Haryana raises major questions about the electoral process. On the other hand, the BJP’s dismissive reaction frames the allegations as diversionary and politically motivated.
The controversy may prompt closer scrutiny of electoral data in Haryana — especially on postal vs booth results, duplicate entries, and how the Election Commission addresses such claims. It also adds a fresh dimension to the larger “vote chori” narrative being advanced by the opposition nationally.
