Congress Accuses Election Commission of Centralizing Voter Roll Changes
Jairam Ramesh alleges the Election Commission of India's ECINET system allows the BJP to centralize voter roll deletions and additions from its New Delhi headquarters.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on October 8, 2026, that the Election Commission of India (ECI) designed its ECINET system to centralize voter roll additions and deletions from the Bharatiya Janata Party headquarters in New Delhi. Ramesh claimed the ECI violated the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, by restricting the access of Electoral Registration Officers in states such as Goa and West Bengal.
The allegations follow a media report indicating a security researcher warned the ECI and CERT-In of system flaws on July 8, 2026, though the researcher only received an acknowledgment for one concern on October 6. Internal friction within the ECI has also surfaced, with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi reportedly filing formal objections to decisions regarding the Special Intensive Revision process.
In response to the criticism, the ECI appointed a committee led by a Senior Deputy Election Commissioner to review the legal compliance of the ECINET system.
