Bihar Polls: Kanhaiya Kumar confident of change, raises 'vote chori' alarm

Congress leaders Kanhaiya Kumar, Rahul Gandhi, and Pawan Khera have alleged a 'vote chori' (vote theft) plot by the BJP and Election Commission ahead of Bihar's second phase of polls, raising concerns over voter list irregularities.

Congress Alleges 'Vote Chori' Ahead of Second Phase

With just two days due for the second phase of assembly elections in Bihar, Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar on Saturday expressed confidence that the state is poised to witness a change in government, while also raising concerns over alleged irregularities in the voter list. However, Kumar raised concerns over Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's allegations of "vote chori," stating that if votes were not "stolen," the state would witness a change in government, but if such practices continued, the existing regime would remain in power. "This time, we will see a change in Bihar... Vote chori is a huge issue. If votes are not stolen, the government will be changed, and if votes are stolen, the same government will continue. The Election Commission must answer how 22 votes were prepared with the identity of a Brazilian model," Kanhaiya Kumar told ANI.

Leaders Allege BJP-ECI Collusion

Meanwhile, Congress leader Pawan Khera alleged that numerous voters who have been casting their votes for generations were reportedly deleted from the voter list during the first phase of polling held on November 6. He accused the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Election Commission of India (ECI) of having allegedly worked together to manipulate votes in Haryana. "We recieved complaints from our workers that the names of people who have been casting votes for generations, their names were deleted from the voter list. The entire nation saw that SIR was a flop show in Bihar...With the collusion of the Election Commission of India and the BJP, we were not able to form the government in Haryana, and they stole votes," he said.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged "vote theft" in the Bihar elections, claiming that fake voters had been included in election lists and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Election Commission of orchestrating voter fraud in Haryana elections. Congress leader accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and the Election Commission of orchestrating "voter fraud" in Haryana elections and warned that Bihar's youth would not allow such manipulation this time. Addressing an election rally in Bhagalpur, Rahul Gandhi said, "There are 2 crore voters in Haryana and more than 25 lakh voters in the polling list were fake.... I guarantee you that PM Modi, HM Amit Shah, and the Election Commission have conspired to steal the Haryana election together. We said it with evidence that they committed theft in the Lok Sabha, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and now they are trying to win Bihar's election by stealing...We do not get the voter list till the last moment... The Gen Z of Bihar will not let vote theft happen here..."

On November 6, voting was held for 121 seats across 18 districts, marking the completion of the first phase of polling. The second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections is scheduled for November 11, with counting of votes to be conducted on November 14.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)