Rahul Gandhi accuses BJP of rigging 2024 Maharashtra polls, BJP hits back with 'George Soros playbook' charge

Rahul Gandhi alleged that the BJP rigged the 2024 Maharashtra assembly polls using a five-step method. The Election Commission and BJP strongly denied his claims, calling them false, misleading, and harmful to democratic institutions.

Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi (Photo/ANI)

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Saturday claimed that the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly election was “rigged” by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) using what he described as a detailed five-step plan to manipulate the outcome.

In a strongly-worded op-ed titled Match-Fixing Maharashtra, published in the Indian Express and later shared on X, Gandhi wrote:

"Maharashtra assembly elections in 2024 were a blueprint for rigging democracy."

The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance had won a landslide victory with 235 out of 288 seats in those elections, stunning Congress and other INDIA alliance parties, who had performed well in the Lok Sabha elections held just months earlier.

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 <br><strong>The five steps Rahul Gandhi alleges were used to ‘steal’ the election</strong></h2><p>In his article and subsequent posts, Gandhi outlined what he claimed was the BJP’s method to ‘steal’ elections:</p><p><i><strong>Rig the Election Commission:</strong></i> He alleged the 2023 law to change the appointment process of Election Commissioners was meant to tilt the system in the BJP’s favour. The panel now includes the PM, a Union minister, and the Leader of the Opposition, removing the Chief Justice of India, who was part of the earlier panel.</p><div type="dfp" position=4>Ad4</div><p><i><strong>Fake voters on rolls:</strong></i> Gandhi claimed that fake names were added to voter rolls to inflate numbers artificially.</p><p><i><strong>Manipulated turnout:</strong></i> He questioned how turnout jumped by 7.83% (over 76 lakh votes) after polls closed.</p><p><i><strong>Targeted bogus voting:</strong></i> He alleged fake votes were cast precisely in the seats the BJP needed to win.</p><p><i><strong>Evidence concealed:</strong></i> Finally, Gandhi claimed the system was rigged to hide evidence of these manipulations.</p><p>Calling it "match-fixing", the Rae Bareli MP said that cheating in elections may help win seats, but it damages institutions and erodes public trust. “Match-fixed elections are poison for any democracy,” he warned.</p><p>He also claimed this method would be used again in the upcoming Bihar assembly polls, and eventually “anywhere the BJP is losing.”</p><h2><strong>Election Commission issues strong rebuttal</strong></h2><p>The <a href="https://newsable.asianetnews.com/tag/election-commission-of-india">Election Commission of India</a> (ECI) responded firmly to the allegations. In a statement, it said:</p><ul><li>All polling took place in front of party-appointed polling agents.</li><li>Congress never raised formal objections during counting or scrutiny.</li></ul><p>A detailed response to similar concerns had already been sent to Congress in December 2024 and was available on the ECI website.</p><p>The ECI criticised repeated misinformation, calling it a disrespect to law, and warned that such statements demotivate lakhs of officials who ensure free and fair elections.</p><p>“Trying to defame the Election Commission after an unfavourable result is completely absurd,” the poll body said.</p><p>It also reiterated that voter turnout figures often rise in the hours after polls due to normal data aggregation, and that Form 17C, showing exact polling data, is shared with candidates at the close of voting — making tampering impossible.</p><h2><strong>BJP hits back: Calls it ‘Soros playbook’ tactic</strong></h2><p>Reacting strongly, BJP IT cell chief <a href="https://newsable.asianetnews.com/tag/amit-malviya">Amit Malviya</a> accused Rahul Gandhi of trying to spread chaos, not truth.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It is not that Rahul Gandhi doesn’t understand how the electoral process works. He does — very well.<br><br>But his goal is not clarity, it is chaos. His repeated attempts to sow seeds of doubt and dissension in the minds of voters about our institutional processes are deliberate.… <a href="https://t.co/3rjRv0vlXo">https://t.co/3rjRv0vlXo</a> <a href="https://t.co/gJVguW3huZ">pic.twitter.com/gJVguW3huZ</a></p><p>— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) <a href="https://twitter.com/amitmalviya/status/1931239719884464564?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p>&nbsp;</p><p>“His aim is not clarity but confusion. This is straight from George Soros’ playbook, weaken public trust in institutions to destabilise democracy,” Malviya wrote on X.</p><p>He said Rahul only raises questions when Congress loses, but accepts the system without complaint when it wins.</p><h2><strong>BJP’s shock win in Maharashtra Assembly elections</strong></h2><p>The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance swept the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections.</p><ul><li>BJP won 132 seats</li><li>Shiv Sena (Shinde) took 57</li><li>NCP (Ajit Pawar) secured 41</li></ul><p>The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi suffered heavy losses:</p><ul><li>Congress got just 16 seats</li><li>Shiv Sena (UBT) won 20</li><li>NCP (Sharad Pawar) managed only 10</li></ul><p>The result shocked poll analysts and Congress leaders, who expected a strong performance after INDIA bloc’s success in the state’s Lok Sabha elections earlier in the year.</p><p>Rahul Gandhi’s claims are likely to intensify political tensions ahead of the Bihar elections later this year. While the BJP and the Election Commission have rejected his accusations, the Congress is expected to keep the spotlight on alleged electoral manipulation, a strategy that could define its campaign in upcoming state polls.</p>