New Delhi [India], June 10 (ANI): Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has extended strong support to party leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's call for greater transparency in the conduct of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections.

'Democracy cannot survive on the basis of opaque processes and unverifiable data. The Congress Party stands firm with Rahul Gandhi's call for full transparency and institutional accountability, the credibility of the Election Commission is at stake, and we urge it to uphold the standards expected of a neutral and constitutional authority,' Kharge said in a press statement on Monday.

The statement released by the party reiterates the demands made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a newspaper article, urging the Election Commission to release the electoral rolls for the 2024 general and Maharashtra state assembly elections. The party has also raised the issue of an alleged discrepancy in voter turnout and the dilution of the election commissioner's appointment process.

The article authored by Rahul Gandhi, published in multiple national and regional newspapers, raises grave and legitimate questions about the transparency and integrity of the electoral process, particularly in the context of the recently concluded 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections,' Kharge said in a post on X.

https://x.com/kharge/status/1932065156206334339

On the 'unexplained voter surge in Maharashtra, the party said again, 'Between 2019 and early 2024, only 31 lakh new voters were added in Maharashtra. Yet, 41 lakh new voters appeared on the rolls in just the 5 months between the 2024 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections. How did this massive and statistically inconsistent surge occur?'

Talking about their demand to release CCTV footage of voting booths, the Congress said, 'The provisional turnout released was 58.73%, yet the final turnout was declared to be 66%. Where is the post-5 PM CCTV footage or videography to justify this 7% jump?'

The party also criticised the rules changing the composition of the appointment panel for the Election Commissioners, which replaced the Chief Justice of India with the Union Home Minister.

In its statement, the party demanded that the ECI release 'Consolidated, digital, and machine-readable voter rolls for both the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections,' along with the full version history and time stamps.

The second demand reads, 'All post-5 PM CCTV footage or videography from polling booths across Maharashtra during the Assembly elections.'

Earlier on Monday, Maharashtra's Chief Electoral Officer released a statement saying that electoral rolls are revised annually and are distributed to various recognised parties free of cost during the election cycle.

'Electoral rolls are revised annually through a participatory exercise. During this annual exercise, the electoral rolls are shared, free of cost, with recognised political parties, including the INC, first at the draft stage and second time after its finalisation. The similar exercise was done in 2009, 2014, 2019, and 2024, and copies of such electoral rolls were then shared with the INC, as well as other political parties,' an official statement from Maharashtra's CEO said.

On Saturday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called upon the Election Commission to publish consolidated, digital, machine-readable voter rolls for the most recent elections to the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas of all states, including Maharashtra, saying that 'telling the truth' will protect the poll panel's credibility. (ANI)