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In a good beginning to the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, the first phase of polling across 121 seats on November 6 recorded a voter turnout of 64.66%,  among the highest in the state’s history for an Assembly election.  Image Source: Election Commission of India The previous record was 62.57% set in 2000. This surpasses even Bihar’s Lok Sabha turnout peak of 64.6% in 1998. The Election Commission credited voters and polling staff for the “festive mood” and peaceful conduct. But behind the celebration lies a more complex political terrain shaped by massive voter roll revisions, a fractured political landscape, and strategic voter mobilisation. Electoral Enthusiasm or Statistical Mirage? The turnout spike comes against the backdrop of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls earlier this year, during which 47 lakh names were deleted. The voter base dropped from 7.89 crore to 7.42 crore. The opposition alleged the deletions targeted marginalised and poor communitie...

The political climate in India has further polarised just ahead of voting in Bihar, as Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Parliament of India) and prominent Indian politician Rahul Gandhi accused the ruling BJP of orchestrating what he called “one of the biggest electoral frauds in Indian democratic history.”  Citing what his party calls “H Files” -- a cache of alleged evidence -- Rahul Gandhi claimed that 25 lakh fake votes swung the 2024 Haryana Assembly election, which the BJP narrowly won. Image from LoP Rahul Gandhi's powerful presentation. Via: INC India In an extended presentation in New Delhi, Rahul Gandhi alleged that voter rolls were manipulated at scale. He cited examples of duplicate voter IDs, including 22 instances of a Brazilian model’s photo being used under different names like “Sweety” and “Seema,” and a separate case of one woman’s face appearing on 223 voter IDs across polling booths.  “This isn’t random -- it’s industrialis...

The blood on the streets of Mokama is a mirror held up to the soul of Bihar’s politics -- cracked, dark, and deliberately ignored. Dularchand Yadav, a gangster-turned-politician, was killed while campaigning for change. Let that sink in: the only way change seems possible in Bihar is when it is endorsed by the very muscle that held it hostage for decades. Representational Image: Aravind Varier The killing of Yadav in broad daylight -- shot, run over, and discarded like political waste -- days before the state votes, tells us something Bihar has screamed for years: democracy here survives on life support and it is fed by syndicates and sanctioned by silence. And the real killing is of hope. Every election, Biharis line up hoping for development, for jobs, for law and order. But what do they get? The same recycled strongmen, different scarves. One year they wear saffron, the next red or green. Only the flag changes -- the mafia remains. The Crime-Politics Nexus: Bihar’s Incurable Canc...

✍️ Written by Saket Suman In Bihar’s never-ending political circus, the 2025 Assembly elections have descended into a theatre of implosion, betrayal, and tactical demolition. What was initially thought of as a contest over vision, governance, and employment has degenerated into a free-for-all -- dominated by muscle power, money, and managed failures. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar. Pic via the former. Let’s not sugarcoat it. The BJP has outsmarted, out-organised, and outmanoeuvred every other party in this election. But its biggest victory is not at the polling booths. It is in the boardrooms of Bihar’s collapsing political alliances -- especially the JDU. With surgical precision, BJP has allowed Nitish Kumar’s party to rot from within, offering just enough rope for it to hang itself. From baffling ticket distributions to social media optics that never translated on the ground, the JDU looks more like a party planning for defeat than one contesting for power. ...

The seven-day deadline set by the Election Commission of India (ECI) for Congress MP and India's Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi to substantiate his allegations of large-scale voter exclusion has lapsed without compliance.  Rahul Gandhi did not submit any signed affidavit or documentary evidence , as was explicitly demanded by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar during a press conference on August 17.  Image Source: INC India The ultimatum, presented in direct response to Gandhi’s public accusation that over 1.5 lakh names had been illegally removed from electoral rolls, was unambiguous: either file a sworn declaration with supporting facts or issue a public apology. As far as the machine-readable voter list is concerned, the Supreme Court has already said in 2019 that this could be a violation of voter privacy. - Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar #BiharSIR2025 | #ElectionCommission | @ECISVEEP | @SpokespersonECI | #GyaneshKumar pic.twitte...

India’s Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Sunday dismissed opposition allegations of “vote theft” in poll-bound Bihar; said the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is rooted in law and transparency; and underlined that the Election Commission of India (ECI) “has no opponents and no supporters.” Image Source: Election Commission of India The remarks came at the Commission’s first press conference since the controversy erupted over the SIR exercise, which opposition parties--including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his ongoing "Voter Adhikar Yatra"--have described as a conspiracy to “steal elections.”  The CEC countered these claims by stressing that electoral rolls were being prepared in full consultation with voters, Booth Level Officers (BLOs), and Booth Level Agents (BLAs) nominated by political parties. According to the CEC, more than 7 crore voters in Bihar, supported by 1.6 lakh BLAs from across parties, have jointly prepare...

India's Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will launch the “Vote Adhikar Yatra” from Sasaram in Bihar tomorrow; the 16–day march will cover Dehri on Sone in Rohtas; Kutumba, Aurangabad, Deo and Guraru; Punama Wazirganj, Gaya to Barbigha via Nawada; Sheikhpura to Munger via Sikandra and Jamui; Munger to Bhagalpur via Sultanganj; Kursela to Purnia via Korha and Katihar; Purnia to Narpatganj via Chandni Chowk and Araria; Supaul to Darbhanga via Phulparas, Sakri and Madhubani; Darbhanga to Sitamarhi via Muzaffarpur; Sitamarhi to West Champaran via Motihari; West Champaran to Siwan via Gopalganj; Chapra, Saran to Arrah in Bhojpur, culminating in Patna on September 1 -- a 1,300 kilometre route that opposition leaders say is meant to safeguard the very soul of Indian democracy itself. Image Source: INC India Rahul Gandhi framed the march as a defence of the most basic democratic principle: “one person, one vote.” In a post on X, he wrote, “We are bring...

India's Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi met Bihar voters allegedly declared “dead” in the draft roll after the state’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR); accused the Election Commission of disenfranchisement; BJP countered with charges over Sonia Gandhi’s voter registration before citizenship; Congress announced a state-wide protest yatra; and the Supreme Court described Bihar’s SIR as “voter friendly.” Image Source: Mr. Nehr_who? Sharing a video on X with electors omitted from the revised roll, Rahul Gandhi wrote that he had “never had the chance to have tea with ‘dead people’” and thanked the poll body for the “unique experience.”  The Election Commission’s August 1 draft roll, published after the SIR exercise, lists 7.24 crore electors—down 65.6 lakh from the 7.9 crore registered before June 24.  EC data attributes the reduction to 22 lakh dead electors, 36 lakh permanently shifted or untraceable, and 7 lakh duplicate registrations or non-submissions of ...

IndianRepublic.in In a rare show of solidarity, prominent leaders of India's opposition parties gathered for a private dinner at Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi’s official residence on Thursday. The meeting came amid united protests in Parliament over the electoral rolls review in Bihar, which has led to repeated disruptions. The evening brought together a host of political heavyweights, and showed the opposition’s plan to coordinated action on this key national issues. Leaders of the INDIA bloc arrive at Rahul Gandhi’s residence for a high-profile dinner aimed at showcasing opposition unity.

India’s opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has escalated his party’s challenge to the legitimacy of the 2024 general elections. He has alleged large-scale voter fraud and data manipulation.  Image Source: The Protagonist on X In a detailed press conference, the leader presented what he described as documentary proof of electoral roll irregularities and called on the Election Commission to initiate proceedings.  The full video of the press event is available below.  #VoteChori हमारे लोकतंत्र पर Atom Bomb है। pic.twitter.com/jcLvhLPqM6 — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 7, 2025 ALSO READ:  SPOTLIGHT: India’s Election Integrity Faces Political Scrutiny Amid LoP Rahul Gandhi's Vote Theft Allegations

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced two key measures aimed at improving voter convenience and ensuring compliance with poll day protocols. The latest directives include the introduction of a mobile phone deposit facility outside polling stations and revised rules for canvassing near voting areas, in accordance with the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961 . Image Source: ECI Website/representational Only Acknowledging the growing use of mobile phones across urban and rural areas—and the difficulty some voters face in managing them on election day—the Commission has directed that voters will be required to deposit their mobile phones outside the polling station. Designated pigeonhole boxes or jute bags will be placed near the entrance for this purpose. Phones must be switched off and are not permitted inside polling booths . However, exemptions can be made by the R...