Provide Docs To Show ‘Shakun Rani Voted Twice’: Rahul Gets Fresh Notice As Voter Denies Claim

Karnataka’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has written to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, requesting documentary evidence to support his allegation that a woman, identified as Shakun Rani, had cast her vote twice during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

In the letter, addressed to the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, the CEO noted that Gandhi had displayed documents in a press conference on 7 August, claiming they were from the Election Commission of India (ECI) records and stating, “This is EC data.” Gandhi had further alleged, “On this ID card, a vote has been cast twice — the tick mark is what the polling booth officer said.”

However, the CEO said that an inquiry revealed Shakun Rani denied voting twice, and the document shown was not issued by a polling officer. Gandhi has been asked to submit the documents on which he based his claim so that a detailed investigation can be undertaken.

Notice to Shri Rahul Gandhi, Hon’ble Member of Parliament and LoP, Lok Sabha.@ECISVEEP pic.twitter.com/plSfgoeytZ

— Chief Electoral Officer, Karnataka (@ceo_karnataka) August 10, 2025

“Preliminary enquiry conducted by this office reveals that the tick-marked document shown by you in the presentation (copy enclosed) is not a document issued by the polling officer. Therefore, you are kindly requested to provide the relevant documents on the basis of which you have concluded that Smt. Shakun Rani or anyone else has voted twice, so that a detailed inquiry can be undertaken by this office,” the notice read.

BJP’s Basavaraj Bommai Demands Apology

Reacting to Gandhi’s remarks, BJP MP and former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai told ANI that the Congress leader should apologise to “the people of Mahadevapura and the nation for misguiding the people of Karnataka and bringing discredit to constitutional bodies like the Election Commission.”

#WATCH | Haveri, Karnataka | On Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi’s allegations on the EC, BJP MP and former Karnataka CM Basavraj Bommai says, “…Rahul Gandhi should apologise to the people of Mahadevapura and the nation for misguiding the people of Karnataka and bringing discredit to… pic.twitter.com/JGAta7Om7Q

— ANI (@ANI) August 10, 2025

The Election Commission of India also issued a statement on Saturday, asking Gandhi to either provide a declaration as per rules or apologise for his “false” allegations.

Rahul Gandhi Doubles Down on ‘Vote Chori’ Allegations

Despite the pushback, Rahul Gandhi reiterated his charge of “vote chori” (vote theft) in a post on X, calling it “an attack on the foundational idea of ‘one man, one vote’” and stressing the need for a “clean” voter roll.

“A clean voter roll is imperative for free and fair elections. Our demand from the EC is clear — be transparent and release digital voter rolls so that people and parties can audit them. This fight is to protect our democracy,” Gandhi wrote.

The Congress party has announced a meeting of its general secretaries, in-charges, and heads of frontal organisations on 11 August to plan a nationwide campaign against “voter list manipulation and election fraud”. Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, in a post on X, likened the effort to a “do-or-die” mission, invoking Mahatma Gandhi’s Quit India movement.

Congress Flags Mahadevapura as Case Study

During his 7 August press conference, Gandhi said the Congress had expected to win 16 seats in Karnataka but secured only nine. Investigating seven unexpected losses, the party zeroed in on Mahadevapura, where Gandhi alleged “vote theft” involving 100,250 votes.

According to him, Congress polled 115,586 votes against the BJP’s 229,632 in the Mahadevapura Assembly segment, despite winning all other Vidhan Sabhas in the area. He claimed the alleged irregularities included duplicate voters, fake or invalid addresses, and bulk registrations at single addresses where, upon verification, “one family” was found to be living instead of the 50–60 voters registered.