The Election Commission of India (ECI) found itself at the heart of a political storm on August 16, 2025, as it issued a pointed rebuttal to opposition parties’ allegations of widespread manipulation and errors in the country’s electoral rolls. The controversy, which has gathered momentum ahead of key state elections in Bihar, centers on claims by opposition leaders—most notably Congress’s Rahul Gandhi—that the poll body either overlooked or enabled irregularities favoring the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In a detailed statement released on Saturday, the ECI sought to set the record straight. According to Business Standard, the commission asserted, “It seems that some political parties and their Booth Level Agents (BLAs) did not examine the electoral rolls at the appropriate time and did not point out errors, if any.” This, the commission emphasized, referred to the official “claims and objections” period—a window specifically designed for parties and electors to scrutinize draft rolls and seek corrections before their finalization.
The ECI’s response comes in the wake of increasingly vocal accusations from the opposition. Rahul Gandhi, leader of the Congress party, has described the alleged irregularities as “vote chori”—a phrase the commission strongly objected to, calling it a “dirty phrase” meant to mislead the public and create a false narrative, as reported by The New Indian Express. Gandhi has refused the commission’s request to submit his claims under oath, stating that his “oath to the Constitution” sufficed.
In its press note, the commission reiterated that political parties are involved at every stage of electoral roll preparation. Draft rolls are routinely distributed both digitally and physically to all recognized parties and uploaded on the ECI’s website for public access. “After the publication of the draft electoral rolls, digital and physical copies of the same are shared with all political parties and put on the EC website for anyone to see. Following the publication of the draft ER, a full one-month period is available with the electors and political parties for the filing of claims and objections before the final ER is published,” the commission explained, as cited by The Hindu.
Once the final electoral rolls are published, a two-tiered appeals process exists. The first appeal can be made to the District Magistrate, and if necessary, a second appeal may be directed to the Chief Election Officer of each State or Union Territory. This, the ECI said, ensures “utmost transparency” in accordance with the law, rules, and guidelines.
Despite these mechanisms, opposition parties argue that the system is being subverted. Rahul Gandhi’s upcoming “Vote Adhikar Yatra” in Bihar—a 16-day public campaign across 20 districts—aims to raise awareness about what he describes as “major anomalies” in the preparation of voter lists. The campaign, which launches on August 17, is expected to draw significant public attention ahead of the state’s assembly elections, scheduled for November.
Adding fuel to the fire, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav has claimed that BJP leaders in Bihar were issued two Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) numbers as part of a “larger conspiracy” to manipulate voter rolls. The ECI has rejected these accusations outright, maintaining that all parties in Bihar were provided with detailed lists of proposed deletions—covering deaths, migrations, and duplicate entries—along with clear instructions on how to file objections during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
“The election system for Parliament and Assembly elections in India is a multi-layered decentralized construct as envisaged by law,” the ECI’s statement read, as reported by The Hindu. Electoral Registration Officers (EROs), who are Sub-Divisional Magistrate-level officials, and Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are tasked with ensuring the accuracy of the rolls. The commission stressed that, “Utmost transparency is the hallmark of electoral roll preparation as per law, rules, and guidelines.”
But as the opposition presses on with protests and public rallies, the ECI has tried to maintain a tone of openness. “ECI continues to welcome the scrutiny of Electoral Rolls by Political Parties and any Elector. It will help SDMs/EROs to remove the errors and purify the Electoral Rolls which has always been the objective of ECI,” the commission stated, according to Business Standard. The poll body added that such oversight is crucial in helping electoral officers identify and rectify mistakes, ensuring the “purity of the electoral roll.”
The ECI also pointed out that some of the complaints now being raised refer to rolls prepared in previous years, not just the most recent revisions. The commission argued that the “appropriate time to raise any issue with the electoral rolls would have been during the claims and objections period of that phase, which is precisely the objective behind sharing the electoral rolls with all political parties and the candidates.” Had these issues been raised “at the right time through the right channels,” the ECI said, “it would have enabled the concerned SDM/EROs to correct the mistakes, if genuine, before those elections.”
Meanwhile, the commission is preparing to address the controversy head-on at a scheduled press conference on Sunday, August 17. There, the ECI is expected to respond to the latest round of allegations, explain the safeguards built into the voter roll revision process, and reiterate its commitment to transparency and accuracy. According to The New Indian Express, the commission is also expected to clarify its position on the Special Intensive Revision in Bihar and the role of political parties in that process.
The opposition, for its part, shows no sign of backing down. The INDIA bloc—a coalition of opposition parties—has announced a series of protests against the ongoing revision of voters’ lists, alleging that malpractices could disenfranchise large numbers of genuine voters. The ECI, however, maintains that all stakeholders have been given ample opportunity to participate in the process and that its procedures are designed to prevent precisely the kinds of abuses now being alleged.
As the war of words escalates, the stakes for Indian democracy could hardly be higher. The purity of the electoral rolls is not just a bureaucratic concern; it is the foundation of free and fair elections, and by extension, the legitimacy of the nation’s democracy. With both sides digging in, all eyes will be on the ECI’s press conference—and the coming weeks in Bihar—as the debate over electoral integrity continues to unfold.
For now, the commission’s message is clear: scrutiny is welcome, but the time for corrections is built into the process. Whether that reassurance will satisfy critics remains to be seen.
