E-Paper
SP chief alleges large-scale voter deletions in UP
Former CM also attacks poll panel for its alleged inaction over complaints during elections in Uttar Pradesh since 2019
: Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on Monday distributed copies of affidavits he claimed to have filed with the Election Commission (ECI), alleging large-scale voter deletions and irregularities in Uttar Pradesh during the 2022 assembly elections.
He also attacked the ECI for its alleged inaction over complaints during elections in Uttar Pradesh since 2019.
He further alleged that in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and 2017 UP assembly polls, the EC removed officers on the complaints by Bharatiya Janata Party. He also claimed there was a robbery of votes in the Uttar Pradesh assembly by-elections held last year.
Speaking to reporters in the Parliament complex, Yadav said nearly 18,000 affidavits had been prepared and submitted within the deadline given to him after he received a notice from the poll panel.
“When I received the notice, I sought help from SP workers, and we managed to prepare only 18,000 affidavits within the given time frame. If we had more time, we could have prepared many more. If no investigation or action is taken after submitting these affidavits, then who will trust the Election Commission? In the by-elections, this was not a minor theft; it was a massive robbery,” he said.
The affidavits, according to Yadav, related to anomalies in constituencies such as Amapur, Bakshi Ka Talab, Jaunpur Sadar and Kursi. He said these documented cases of voter deletions, which he alleged were carried out in a targeted manner against certain communities. “Communities like Maurya, Pal, Bhagel and Rathore have seen voter deletions aimed at weakening their political impact. In some seats, we lost by narrow margins, and these deletions played a direct role,” he said.
Yadav also raised concerns over the conduct of election officials, alleging that their deployment was carried out on caste lines and had influenced the outcome in several constituencies. He demanded that the EC take strict action against officials responsible for irregularities in the rolls.
“If the Election Commission orders the suspension of the District Magistrate, there will be no vote theft at all,” he added.
The SP chief further alleged that the EC was functioning under pressure from the BJP.
The development comes a day after Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said at a press conference that the poll body had not received any affidavits from Uttar Pradesh or from the SP. “The Commission has not received such affidavits from Uttar Pradesh,” he had told reporters in response to questions on the issue.
For his part, Yadav also said, “Since the BJP government came to power, no officer has been removed in Uttar Pradesh on the basis of a complaint during elections. During the Samajwadi government, many officers were removed during polls. This means that the Election Commission listens more to the BJP. If we complain to the Election Commission, no action is taken. The BJP MLA from Chhibramau had got four hundred fake votes made at his booth.”
“In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and before the 2017 assembly polls , any officer against whom the BJP complained was transferred. Under the BJP government, the Opposition kept complaining during the elections but the officers were not removed. There are written documents of all this,” he claimed.
About the by-elections, he said, “Can anyone imagine that the police will cast votes? The police cast votes in private dress. How did the BJP get 77% votes in the by-election in the assembly constituency in which it lost the 2022 elections?”
He said the SP lost the elections by a very small margin in Kursi, Shahganj, Chhibramau, Shravasti and Madiyahun.
“If we look at the deleted votes there, it was more. The votes of the people who had cast their votes in the Lok Sabha elections 2019 were cut in the 2022 assembly elections. If there is a process to get votes made, then there is also a process to get votes cut. Our demand is that a district magistrate should be suspended. Vote theft will stop in the entire country,” Yadav said.
