NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday launched the “Vote Adhikar Yatra” against the alleged “theft of votes” through EC’s special intensive revision of electoral roll in poll-bound Bihar.The yatra, scheduled to begin on Sunday, will cover more than 20 districts of Bihar over 16 days.”We are bringing the Voter Rights Yatra to the people. This is the fight to protect the most fundamental democratic right – ‘one person, one vote’,” Rahul wrote in a post on X. “Join us in Bihar to save the Constitution,” he added.Meanwhile, Mahagathbandhan allies will also join Congress in mobilising support for the yatra, which is set to begin from Sasaram.”We are starting the Vote Adhikar Yatra from Sasaram tomorrow. Tomorrow, we will all be with the Mahagathbandhan allies. We will visit several districts, and our effort will be to make people aware so that no voter’s name is left out,” RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav said.Earlier, he released a campaign song for the yatra on social media and appealed to the people of Bihar to join in large numbers.”No one should be deprived of his or her rights, the feeling of freedom should not be broken, no one’s vote should be cut,” he wrote while launching the campaign. The showdown between the Election Commission and the opposition began after parties objected to the intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar just months ahead of the assembly elections.Opposition parties dubbed the exercise as “Votebandi” and claimed that it would put democracy in the state “under threat.”On August 7, Rahul unveiled what he had described as an “atom bomb” of evidence against the Election Commission. Citing data from the Mahadevapura assembly segment, which falls under the Bengaluru Central parliamentary constituency in Congress-ruled Karnataka, he accused the poll body of “colluding” with the BJP.The Election Commission has firmly rejected the allegations and asked Gandhi to sign an affidavit to formalise his complaint. He refused, saying he had already sworn an oath to the Constitution.
