‘If voting rights go, everything goes’: Rahul Gandhi at Voter Adhikar Yatra

Sitamarhi: Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday, warned that the deletion of over 65 lakh names from the electoral rolls is part of a ‘wider conspiracy’ to replace legitimate voters with fake ones.

Addressing a gathering on the twelfth day of his Bharat Voter Adhikar Yatra, Gandhi alleged that the BJP is targeting voters from marginalised and disadvantaged communities — including Dalits, Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), minorities, and the poor — while leaving out affluent sections.

“They haven’t deleted the names of the rich. Only the poor, Dalits, and minorities have been struck off the voter rolls. This is not an accident. It’s a plan,” Gandhi declared, holding up a copy of the Indian Constitution. “If the right to vote is lost, everything is lost.”

Gandhi warned that removing people’s names from voter lists is just the beginning: “First they will take your vote, then your ration card, then your land — and finally, all your rights.”

He cited the example of Mahadevapura in Karnataka, where Congress had earlier ‘exposed’ alleged electoral fraud involving the addition of fake voters — a move he claims handed the BJP the Bangalore Central seat. “We caught them stealing votes in Karnataka. Bihar will not be their next playground,” he said.

He added that the ongoing Voter Adhikar Yatra, supported by INDIA bloc allies, is not just a symbolic campaign — but a direct message to the Election Commission and the BJP that voter suppression will not be tolerated.

Present alongside Gandhi were key INDIA bloc leaders, including Tejashwi Yadav, Dipankar Bhattacharya, and Rajesh Ram, underlining the opposition’s united front on the issue. Yadav also highlighted concern over what he called ‘selective deletion’ of votes.

IANS