India opposition parties call for protests over ‘vote theft’

India's opposition parties have announced plans for protests, claiming they aim to "save democracy" following allegations of impropriety in a large-scale voter roll revision. The investigation, reported by the Indian Express, suggests impropriety in the revision process, which has heightened tensions with the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Politicians from the opposition allege that the head of the ECI, Gyanesh Kumar, acted at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The ECI has vehemently rejected these claims, stating that all its decisions were legally valid. Kumar, however, has not publicly commented on the allegations.

Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, a prominent opposition figure, stated that the primary issue is the "theft of votes." He vowed that those responsible for undermining Indian democracy would be held accountable. In response to the allegations, Congress party chief Mallikarjun Kharge announced that opposition lawmakers will march to the ECI in New Delhi on Tuesday and hold "save democracy" rallies across the country in the following days.

The Indian Express reported last week that some key decisions related to the voter roll revision may have been taken without the approval of two of the three election commissioners. The ECI maintains that the report presents only a partial picture and that the revision was meant to eliminate duplicate entries and exclude "foreign illegal immigrants" from voter rolls.