Sudhanshu Trivedi, speaking at a press conference in Delhi, denounced Congress leaders for allegedly inflating the number of voters purged from the rolls, citing a figure of 13 crore. He argued that around 3 crore of those names were non‑traceable, a large portion were deceased, and roughly 1 crore were duplicates.
The controversy erupted as Congress’s nationwide "Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao" campaign demanded the restoration of those voters, while the BJP insisted that transparent verification was essential to eliminate dead, duplicate and shifted entries.
In the same session, Supreme Court Justice clarified that the Court had not approved any modification to Form 6, the application used for adding names to the rolls, and has now ordered the Election Commission to furnish records on any changes and the authorities involved.
Rahul Gandhi has accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of illegally altering Form 6 to favour the BJP, allegations the Election Commission rebuts as unfounded and unanimously approved by its board.
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra also countered Gandhi’s claims, calling them "four lies" and challenging the opposition’s stance on polling machines and the Election Commission’s impartiality.
Ahead of the upcoming by‑polls, the BJP’s attack underscores a broader strategy to pressure states to conduct electoral‑roll verifications, while the Supreme Court’s inquiry signals a legal check on the electoral‑roll revision process.