The opposition Congress party in Odisha has accused the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Election Commission of India of “irregularities” during the simultaneous state assembly and Lok Sabha elections held last year in the state.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, Odisha Congress President Bhakta Charan Das claimed that an unusually high number of votes were cast in the final hours of polling. “About 42 lakh votes were cast in the state between 5 pm and 9 pm on polling day,” Das stated, questioning how such a large number of voters could arrive at polling stations so late in the evening.
Das also raised suspicions about BJD’s performance, which saw the party win 51 assembly seats but fail to secure a single Lok Sabha constituency.
“The BJD won 51 assembly seats, but was unable to win a single Lok Sabha constituency. The BJD won four or five assembly seats in some Lok Sabha constituencies, but its candidates could not become MPs. How did it happen?” he asked.
Das cited the Congress’s own success in the Koraput Lok Sabha seat, which the party won by securing six out of the seven assembly segments within it, as evidence of a more consistent outcome.
Das credited Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for bringing these alleged irregularities to light and announced that the party would hold press conferences in every district on Monday to inform the public about the “vote theft” that he claims helped bring the BJP to power.
“The Congress will hold a press conference in every district on Monday to tell the people how the Election Commission betrayed them through vote theft and brought the BJP to power,” Das stated.
Responding to the allegations levelled by the Congress, senior BJP leader Jaynarayan Mishra dismissed the claims as an attempt to mislead the public. “The Congress is misleading the people,” Mishra said. “If they have proof and documents, they should move to the Election Commission or court,” he added.
