'Given clean chit to itself': Congress writes counter response to ECI over alleged irregularities in Haryana polls

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has dismissed allegations by the Congress party regarding irregularities in the recent Haryana elections. In response, the Congress submitted a "counter response" to the ECI on Friday, describing its initial reply as "generic" and focused on dismissing the complaints and their petitioners.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh shared the letter on X, stating, "The ECI gave a non-reply to INC India's specific complaints in 20 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in Haryana."

The party further remarked, "Not surprisingly, the ECI has given a clean chit to itself. Ordinarily, we would have left it there. However, the tone and tenor of the ECI's response, the language used, and the accusations levelled against the INC compel us to submit this counter-response."The Congress also criticised the "pattern" outlined by the ECI in Paragraph 8 of its reply, calling it "disingenuous."

"The majority of issues raised concern the period between the announcement of the Model Code of Conduct and the end of the election, i.e., the date of counting. Grievances arise quickly, often within minutes, and sometimes only become apparent once results are declared or information from other booths can be compared. If not addressed on the ground, these issues become moot, leaving only the option of an Election Petition, which is a lengthy process that can take years to resolve," it stated.

The party added, "We approach the ECI with whatever information we possess, and the ECI, with its vast resources, examines and reviews this information to assess its accuracy. Often, the ECI finds our information correct; at other times, it does not. Yet we refrain from 'naming and shaming' the ECI after the election concludes."

The Congress also claimed that, despite filing over a hundred complaints against the Prime Minister and the Home Minister, the ECI has taken action on none, while holding Congress's president and former president to account for their actions or speeches.

"As mentioned, it is unsurprising that the ECI has reviewed our complaints and exonerated itself. The response on the fluctuating battery levels of the voting machines is more obfuscating than clarifying. In essence, the ECI's reply is a standard, generic explanation of machine functionality, rather than a specific response to the particular complaints we raised. While our complaints were specific, the ECI's response is generic and focused on dismissing the complaints and the petitioners," the Congress said.

On October 29, the ECI had categorically rejected the Congress's allegations, describing them as "baseless, misplaced, and devoid of facts."

Reacting to the developments, Congress leader Pawan Khera commented, "If the Prime Minister considers himself God, his CEC will, naturally, see himself as God's gift to mankind."

Except for the headline, the story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from ANI.