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'Vote chori an anti-national act': Rahul Gandhi on erasable ink row
Rahul Gandhi shared a media report on the ink used in the Maharashtra civic polls allegedly being erasable.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday attacked the Election Commission over the “erasable ink” row, saying that the trust in democracy has "collapsed".
Sharing a media report on the ink used in the Maharashtra civic polls allegedly being erasable, the leader of the opposition said that “vote chori” is an anti-national act.
“Election commission gaslighting citizens is how trust has collapsed in our democracy. Vote Chori is an anti-national act,” Gandhi wrote on X.
The Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) on Thursday ordered a probe into complaints of erasable electoral ink being used during the civic polls and warned of action against those “creating confusion” after Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray flagged the issue.
Thackeray accused the state election commissioner Dinesh Waghmare of “openly siding” with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance and demanded his suspension.
Waghmare announced an inquiry into complaints about erasable electoral ink and said that claims that acetone or nail polish can remove it are false. He warned that anyone attempting to remove the ink or spread confusion among voters would face legal action.
The SEC clarification on the ‘erasable ink’ issue
Before ordering the inquiry, the Maharashtra SEC issued a clarification stating that attempts to remove the indelible ink applied to voters’ fingers, thereby creating confusion, are illegal. The poll body warned that if a person is found trying to vote again after removing the ink mark, appropriate legal action will be taken.
"Attempts to remove the indelible ink applied on voters’ fingers at polling stations and thereby create confusion in the voting process are illegal. The State Election Commission has clarified that if any person is found trying to vote again after removing the ink mark, appropriate legal action will be taken against them," the SEC said in the statement.
"If anyone attempts to illegally remove the ink applied at the polling station, the concerned voter will not be allowed to vote again. Instructions in this regard have already been given to the polling staff. After a voter casts their vote, a record of it is made. Therefore, even if the ink mark is removed, the voter cannot vote again. To increase awareness, these instructions have once again been issued to all concerned," the statement added.
