Congress alleges ‘dangerous conspiracy’ to manipulate Assam voter rolls, targets BJP and Election Commission

The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Thursday, January 8 launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led state government and the Election Commission of India, alleging a “dangerous and deliberate conspiracy” to manipulate electoral rolls in Assam through large-scale irregularities in the ongoing Special Summary Revision (SSR) process.

Addressing a press conference at Rajiv Bhavan, Dhubri Lok Sabha MP Rakibul Hussain and former Rajya Sabha MP Ripun Bora claimed that Assam was witnessing a pattern of voter list manipulation similar to what the Congress alleges had occurred earlier in states such as Maharashtra, Haryana and Karnataka.

Rakibul Hussain alleged that despite assurances from the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Assam that the SSR exercise would be conducted like a routine annual revision, the situation on the ground told a different story. He claimed that Booth Level Supervisors were kept uninformed while draft electoral rolls were prepared, resulting in confusion and irregularities during the claims and objections process.

The Congress leader further alleged large-scale misuse of Forms 6, 7 and 8, accusing the Election Commission of violating its own guidelines by allowing a single individual to raise objections against multiple voters. “The rules clearly permit only individual objections. Allowing one person to object to several voters raises serious concerns about the integrity of the process,” Hussain said.

Targeting Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Hussain alleged that objections were being filed with the intent of deleting genuine voters while facilitating the inclusion of outsiders in electoral rolls. He also accused the Election Commission of failing to share weekly updates on claims and objections with political parties, as mandated under Election Commission norms.

“None of the established rules are being followed. The Election Commission is fully aware of what is happening but has chosen to remain a silent spectator,” Hussain alleged, calling the entire process unconstitutional and unethical.

Former MP Ripun Bora echoed these concerns, accusing the BJP of turning the Election Commission into a “puppet”. He pointed out that draft electoral rolls published in late December and early January showed negligible differences, making it nearly impossible for voters and political parties to identify changes or seek corrections.

Bora alleged that crucial details such as newly added voters, deleted names of deceased voters, and transferred voters were not reflected together in the draft rolls. He said the Election Commission’s explanation that these details would only appear in the final electoral roll defeats the very purpose of the objections process.

Bora also referred to media reports of an alleged online meeting in which the BJP’s Assam president reportedly instructed party leaders to identify voters who did not support the ruling party. He questioned why the Election Commission had not issued any clarification on the matter so far, even if the reports were inaccurate.

Raising further concerns, Bora alleged that Booth Level Officers (BLOs) were being replaced midway through their work in several areas, allegedly for refusing to act under political pressure. He also claimed that BLOs belonging to certain communities were being selectively removed.

Citing instances from Guwahati, Bora alleged serious irregularities at polling stations in Dispur, where additional voters were allegedly included in households without the owners’ knowledge, while entire families were missing from voter lists in other booths.

The Congress leaders announced that a detailed memorandum highlighting these alleged irregularities would be submitted to the Chief Electoral Officer of Assam on January 9. They also said the party would demand a forensic investigation into the controversial video conference involving BJP leaders.

A joint delegation of opposition parties is expected to meet the Chief Election Commissioner in New Delhi in the coming days to press for corrective action, the Congress leaders said.