'Vote Theft': Rahul To Stage Protest In Bengaluru On August 5

Bengaluru: Opposition Leader in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi will stage a protest in Bengaluru on August 5 against the alleged vote theft during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka. KPCC President DK Shivakumar on Wednesday held a meeting with party office bearers and leaders to discuss preparations to be made for the protest.

Earlier, it was said that Rahul Gandhi would take out a padayatra from Mahadevapura assembly constituency in the city to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer and submit a memorandum. But following apprehensions by people about the disruptions the padayatra will cause to the traffic movement on a week-day forced the party to revisit its plans.

"It is going to be a padayatra or just a protest at a fixed venue, which is yet to be decided. AICC General Secretaries Randeep Surjewala and K C Venugopal are visiting Bengaluru tomorrow (Thursday). After discussing with them, we will take a final decision," Shivakumar said.

Rahul Gandhi, who has been locked horns with the Election Commission of India after the Maharashtra assembly elections, had recently alleged that a large-scale vote-theft took place in Karnataka during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and claimed his party has gathered proof of the same.

"We have studied the voter list of one of the constituencies in Karnataka, and we got a 100% proof of vote theft. I will place it before the ECI in black and white," Rahul had said while speaking to reporters outside Parliament in Delhi.