CM Siddaramaiah accuses ECI of 'colluding' with ruling party, 'threatening' Opposition
Bengaluru, Aug 18 (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of "colluding" with the ruling party and said instead of addressing the "vote theft" claims made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, it tried to threaten the Opposition.
The ECI’s credibility will remain in doubt until it honestly fulfilled its duty of safeguarding every citizen’s vote, he said.
"The Election Commission of India (ECI) finally spoke - not out of duty, but because the Congress, the INDIA Alliance, the civil society, and even the Supreme Court forced it to. And when it did, the mask slipped. Instead of behaving like an impartial referee, the @ECISVEEP looked like it was reading straight from the BJP’s script. Yesterday’s press conference didn’t answer questions raised by LoP @RahulGandhi - it only confirmed suspicions," Siddaramaiah said in a post on 'X'.
During a press conference in Delhi, Chief Election Commissioner Gynaesh Kumar had said the electoral roll revision is aimed at removing all shortcomings in voter lists and it is a matter of grave concern that some parties are spreading misinformation about it and “firing from the EC's shoulder”.
The CEC rejected as "baseless" the allegations of "vote theft" and asserted that all stakeholders are working to make SIR a success in a transparent manner.
The chief minister described the ECI’s press conference as "shrouded in arrogance" and said the poll panel acted as though it was doing a favour by speaking directly, instead of hiding behind nameless, faceless “sources”.
"But what the country saw was not accountability, but an attempt to intimidate and deflect. Rahul Gandhi had shown serious mismatches in Bengaluru Central, using the ECI’s own data. From that one example, it is obvious that such anomalies exist in many other constituencies too. Instead of answering, the ECI tried to threaten the opposition," he alleged.
The CM pointed out that the Chief Election Commissioner asked for affidavits and oaths, as if its own numbers need certification before they can be trusted.
"This is absurd. A responsible Commission would have taken the mismatch seriously, verified it, and explained it to the public. By refusing to do so, it has only strengthened the suspicion that it is working hand in glove with the ruling party. And when it claimed to be impartial towards both ruling and opposition parties, it sounded less like truth and more like a bad joke," he said.
Siddaramaiah termed ECI’s dismissal of concerns about "fake" and duplicate voters as "shocking".
"It brushed them aside saying no one raised objections during the 45-day claims window, so the matter is closed. This is nothing but an excuse to escape responsibility. The truth is, it took time for @INCIndia to expose these irregularities because the ECI itself made the data inaccessible. We had to dig through thousands of pages in just one assembly segment of Bengaluru Central to uncover the mismatches. If this is the situation in one seat, imagine the scale across the country," he added.
Siddaramaiah wondered if the ECI would simply ignore the irregularities that would come to light after elections.
"Its constitutional duty is to protect the integrity of every single vote, not to shut its eyes when the problem becomes visible later," he remarked.
He alleged that the excuses given on machine-readable electoral rolls and CCTV footage were even weaker.
"The ECI said searchable rolls could harm privacy. But electoral rolls are already public records. Political parties are not outsiders - they are part of the democratic process. Denying them full, verifiable data will not help in protecting privacy; it will only hide errors and fraud," he said.
Slamming the ECI, the chief minister termed the so-called privacy excuse on CCTV footage as "laughable".
According to him, CCTV in polling booths exists to ensure transparency, not secrecy. To destroy that record after just 45 days is not protecting voters, it is protecting wrongdoing. And the biggest questions were not answered at all.
"Why was the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) rushed in Bihar just months before elections and during floods? Why did Maharashtra suddenly record a surge of 70 lakh voters between 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections?" he asked.
"Why did the poll panel oppose Supreme Court directions that would have made the system more transparent and voter-friendly? Why has it not taken action on the evidence given by Rahul Gandhi? On every important issue, the ECI chose silence," he alleged.
Siddaramaiah reminded that democracy depended on trust.
"That trust is broken when the Election Commission dodges questions, intimidates the opposition, and shields those in power. The people of India can see this clearly. No press conference or grand speech will cover up the truth. The ECI’s job is to safeguard every citizen’s vote - until it does that honestly, its credibility will remain in doubt," he added.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) finally spoke - not out of duty, but because the Congress, the INDIA Alliance, the civil society, and even the Supreme Court forced it to. And when it did, the mask slipped.
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) August 18, 2025
Instead of behaving like an impartial referee, the @ECISVEEP… pic.twitter.com/oMZvlzpTS7
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Have no personal involvement in Cong’s action against some minority leaders: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said he has no personal involvement in action taken against certain Congress leaders from the minority community following allegations of an internal conspiracy during the recently held Davanagere South bypolls.
He clarified that the decisions were taken by the party high command based on available reports.
Asserting that party discipline is of utmost importance, Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, sought to downplay concerns that action against minority leaders may send the message that “Muslims are being targeted.”
“I don’t have any personal involvement in this. Whatever decisions are taken are made by the party leadership. The party has its own reports. Decisions regarding MLAs or MLCs cannot be taken at the state level without instructions from Delhi,” he said.
Speaking to reporters, he added, “People may blame me; I am not concerned. Everyone must function in accordance with party discipline.”
Responding to concerns within sections of the party that recent actions may convey the impression that minority leaders are being targeted, he said the Congress exists for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, backward classes, farmers, and all sections of society.
The Congress has suspended MLC K Abdul Jabbar from primary membership and relieved another MLC, Naseer Ahmed, from the post of Chief Minister’s political secretary.
The action followed allegations by a group of Muslim leaders that certain party members conspired to defeat the official candidate in Davanagere South.
Following the action, speculation has emerged that Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan may also face disciplinary measures during the next cabinet reshuffle.
The three leaders had reportedly sought a Muslim candidate for the Davanagere South bypoll ticket, which the party instead allotted to the late MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa’s grandson, Samarth Mallikarjun.
They were also said to have not actively participated in the campaign.
Shivakumar also rejected claims of factionalism within the ruling party amid speculation that leaders close to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were being targeted.
Naseer Ahmed and Zameer Ahmed Khan are considered close to the CM.
Rejecting allegations of factionalism within the party, Shivakumar said, “We speak to each other every day. It is the media that creates divisions. Where is my faction? Has anyone put up a board saying they belong to the Siddaramaiah faction? Have I put up any such board?”
“All 139 legislators are my people, and they are all Siddaramaiah’s people as well. Everyone belongs to the Congress,” he added, saying there are no factions within the party and that such claims are media-driven.
Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satish Jarkiholi met Shivakumar on Friday, a day after expressing concerns that disciplinary action against minority leaders may send the wrong message.
Shivakumar said he discussed with Jarkiholi the need to decongest Bengaluru traffic by diverting vehicles entering the city from state and national highways, along with party-related issues.
“We also discussed political matters in the interest of the party and the need to work together,” he said.
Later, speaking to reporters, Jarkiholi said he discussed with Shivakumar the issue of withdrawing Jabbar’s suspension. He said he will also visit New Delhi next week to meet the high command and discuss state developments.
“Jabbar’s suspension was discussed (with Shivakumar). It should be withdrawn. Let’s issue him a notice and allow him to reply. Then let’s send the report to the high command and seek their approval. High command approval is necessary because the instructions came from there. It may take some time,” he said.
Stating that he met the KPCC chief for “damage control,” the minister said, “We have tried to convince him. Sometimes certain decisions happen that need rectification.”
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