Rahul Gandhi's CCTV footage demand draws Election Commission's rebuttal; poll body cites legal issues
PTC News Desk: Senior Congress leader has accused the Election Commission of India of deleting the evidence when it was required to provide the answers after the poll body instructed its officers to destroy CCTV, webcasting and video footage of the elections after 45 days.
“Voter list? Will not give machine-readable format. CCTV footage? Hidden by changing the law. Election photos and videos? Now they will be deleted in 45 days, not 1 year. The one who was supposed to provide answers — is the one deleting the evidence,” Gandhi alleged in a post on X.
“It is clear that the match is fixed. And a fixed election is poison for democracy,” the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha added further.
वोटर लिस्ट?
Machine-readable फ़ॉर्मेट नहीं देंगे।
CCTV फुटेज?
कानून बदलकर छिपा दी।
चुनाव की फोटो-वीडियो?
अब 1 साल नहीं, 45 दिनों में ही मिटा देंगे।
जिससे जवाब चाहिए था - वही सबूत मिटा रहा है।
साफ़ दिख रहा है - मैच फिक्स है। और फिक्स किया गया चुनाव, लोकतंत्र के लिए ज़हर है। pic.twitter.com/eYXAykO04p — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 21, 2025
Meanwhile in a swift response the poll body cited privacy and legal issues in sharing CCTV footage of webcasting of the polling stations. "Sharing of the footage, which would enable easy identification of the electors by any group or an individual, would leave both the elector who has voted and the elector who has not voted vulnerable to pressure, discrimination and intimidation by anti-social elements," Election Commission sources said.
The Election Commission's rebuttal follows Rahul Gandhi's constant assertions that Maharashtra assembly election which were held last year won by BJP-led Mahayuti was rigged.
The poll body also cited that public display of CCTV footage of polling booths violate the legal provisions of the Representation of the People Act and the directions of the Supreme Court of India.
- With inputs from agencies
