NEW DELHI: Election Commission officials on Sunday challenged Congress’ Rahul Gandhi to follow-up on his claims of “rigging” in 2024 Maharashtra assembly elections by formally writing to the poll panel, saying only then can it offer a formal, point-by-point rebuttal of his “baseless allegations”.“It is very strange that even after 24 hours have passed, Rahul has neither written any letter to EC nor sought time with it to air his grievances,” said a senior EC functionary. “It is public knowledge that a constitutional body like EC cannot respond formally to allegations unless they are raised or communicated to it directly,” the functionary added.Also read: ‘Maharashtra polls were match-fixed, Bihar next,’ alleges Rahul GandhiRahul, leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, on Saturday hit out at EC after it rejected his allegations of “rigging” in Maharashtra elections in an Op-Ed. He had said the poll was a “blueprint for rigging democracy”and alleged that this “match-fixing” would next happen in Bihar and “then anywhere BJP is losing”.The EC functionary said the poll body is intrigued that Rahul, on one side, says that the issues raised by him with respect to Maharashtra elections are very serious, “but when it comes to putting them down in black and white to EC, he shies away”.It was suggested that Rahul was possibly taken aback by a “truthful and factual, point-by-point rebuttal given by EC once again on Saturday”. EC had earlier clarified the very same issues with full facts and figures in a note in its response to Congress dated Dec 24, 2024, and again through the media on April 22, 2025.“Rahul, through his Op-Ed article, ended up criticising booth level agents (BLAs), polling agents and counting agents appointed by his own party or its candidates, in Maharashtra. His baseless accusations have disrespected 10.5 lakh BLAs, 50 lakh polling officers and one lakh counting supervisors appointed by EC nationwide, by questioning their integrity and hard work,” said an officer.As per EC instructions, footage from CCTV cameras of polling stations can always be scrutinised by the competent high court in any election petition. However, the footage is not shared with the public or political parties by EC to protect the integrity of elections and the privacy of voters. “Does the LoP not trust even the high court now?” asked the officer.EC sources said the commission had, as part of its consultations with national and state parties on all election-related issues, invited Congress for a meeting on May 15, 2025. “But it developed cold feet and requested for some more time,” shared the officer.
