Congress delegation flags concerns over Maharashtra Assembly election process, seeks raw data from EC

Congress delegation flags discrepancies in Maharashtra Assembly election data to Election Commission, seeking raw data for analysis.

A delegation of Congress leaders on Tuesday (December 3, 2024) met the Election Commission and flagged “discrepancies” in the recently held Maharashtra Assembly election.

The party said there was an unprecedented increase in the number of voters in the five-month period between the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, and glaring inconsistencies in the voter turnout data.

Congress leaders Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Mukul Wasnik, Nana Patole, Pawan Khera, Praveen Chakravarty, Gurdeep Sappal, Sasikanth Senthil, Omar Hoda, and Sanjeev Singh were part of the delegation.

Talking to presspersons later, Mr. Singhvi said the meeting took place in a very cordial manner. While the EC replied to some of the issues raised by the Congress, it has promised a detailed written reply as well, he said.

During the meeting, which lasted a little under two hours, the Congress delegation sought raw data both booth-wise and constituency-wise to analyse on its own the glaring discrepancies flagged by the party.

A note submitted to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar by Mr. Praveen Chakravarty, chairperson of the Congress’s Data Analytics Department, highlighted that 75 lakh more voters exercised their franchise in the Maharashtra Assembly election compared with the Lok Sabha election.

“What was so special about the 2024 Assembly election that 74.5 lakh more people voted than in Lok Sabha election? Do Maharashtra voters feel a special need to come out and vote much more in Assembly than in Lok Sabha election? No. In 2019, when Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were six months apart exactly as in 2024, only 2% more voters voted in Assembly compared to Lok Sabha. Then how come 13% more voters voted in 2024 Assembly election versus Lok Sabha?” the party said.