Votes Theft: Rahul Gandhi to lead protest demonstration in Bengaluru on August 5

AICC leader Rahul Gandhi will lead Congress party’s protest demonstration in Bengaluru on August 5 against what he alleged “votes theft” in Bangalore Central Lok Sabha seat that he said caused his party’s rout in the last year’s general elections.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, AICC general secretary RS Surjewala, and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) DK Shivakumar will meet on Thursday and work out the details of the protest programme, Congress leader Saleem Ahmed told ET.

Gandhi, who is also the Opposition leader in the Lok Sabha, has alleged voter theft in Maharashtra and Karnataka in support of his demand for release of machine-readable digital voter rolls and CCTV footage. He recently said he has 100% proof of the Election Commission allowing cheating in a seat in Karnataka. He said he just looked at one constituency, but the same “drama” of addition of thousands of new voters had been going on in constituency after constituency.


Siddaramaiah too, in a recent statement, had maintained that “there was clear and undeniable evidence of electoral malpractice in Karnataka. In several constituencies across the state, our party workers reported sudden and suspicious additions of new voters, while names of long-time voters were removed without justification.”

Gandhi is expected to address a public meeting at Freedom Park in Bengaluru before heading to the Election Commission’s office in Bengaluru to give a memorandum highlighting the Congress party’s demands.

BJP state president BY Vijayendra called Gandhi’s planned visit to Bengaluru as another attempt to create drama and mislead the public. “He shamelessly claims that the BJP controls the Election Commission — but if that's true, how did Congress win the Karnataka Assembly elections? How did they win 9 Lok Sabha seats and 3 by-elections in the same Karnataka?” the BJP leader said in a statement.

Vijayendra added that Gandhi’s recent comment on the Bengaluru Rural Lok Sabha seat reeks of immaturity and desperation. “Even last week, the CM and DCM made similar irresponsible statements. We demanded an apology then — because they’re not just attacking institutions, they’re questioning the wisdom of Karnataka’s voters. The Congress party’s dangerous soft corner for terrorism and anti-national forces is putting Karnataka at risk. Appeasement politics has turned our state into a soft target for those who want to harm the country.”