&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "‘Should we share videos of mothers, sisters?’: Here's why EC is refusing to share CCTV footage amid Rahul Gandhi’s ‘vote chori’ charge")
The Election Commission of India (EC) on Sunday pushed back against demands for polling booth CCTV footage, saying sharing it would breach voter privacy. The comments came after Rahul Gandhi accused the Commission of turning a blind eye to what he called “vote chori (theft)”. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar took a tough stance at a press conference in Delhi, calling the Opposition’s remarks an “insult of the Constitution”.
Also read: ‘Vote theft allegations an insult, few leaders misleading voters:’ CEC refutes Oppn’s charge of bias
CEC hits back at Rahul Gandhi’s allegations
Without naming the Congress MP directly, the CEC said, “The ‘chori’ charges are shots being fired at the voters by perching a gun on the EC’s shoulder.” He added, “We want to make it clear, that the EC has fearlessly stood by voters from across sections and religions, and will continue to stand by them like a rock.”
Why machine-readable voter lists were not shared
On the demand for machine-readable voter rolls, the CEC pointed to a 2019 Supreme Court ruling. “The Supreme Court has already held that it could breach a voter’s privacy,” he said. The Commission also cited instances where photos of voters were used in the media without their consent. Kumar warned that such actions put individuals’ rights at risk.
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The row over CCTV footage at polling booths
Responding to the push for surveillance footage, Kumar said, “Should the Election Commission share CCTV videos of anyone’s mother, daughter-in-law, sister, or of anyone else?” He argued that with nearly 1.3 crore officials and agents monitoring elections, the process is already transparent. “In such a transparent process, can anyone steal votes?” he asked. The EC said it had seen no proof to back allegations of proxy or duplicate voting.
Rahul Gandhi doubles down in Bihar
Even as the EC briefed the press, Rahul Gandhi addressed a rally in Bihar, accusing the Commission of shielding irregularities during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls. “The entire country knows what the Election Commission is doing,” he told supporters in Sasaram. “Earlier, the country did not know how votes were being stolen. But we made it clear in the press conference how votes are being stolen. Whenever the theft is happening… we will catch the theft and show the people,” he added.
The Commission had earlier asked Gandhi to provide proof under oath. At Sunday’s briefing, Kumar declared, “If within seven days I don’t get the oath, it means he is a liar and he blamed my voters as liars.” He also said false accusations “can scare neither the EC nor any voter”.
