124 Former Bureaucrats Defend ECI, Demand Evidence of Poll Rigging

Bengaluru, October 10: A group of 124 former civil servants, including retired IAS and IFS officers, has defended the Election Commission of India (ECI) against allegations of electoral manipulation, asserting that claims of poll rigging must be backed by verifiable evidence to protect public trust in democracy.

In an open letter to the citizens of India, the signatories, including former ambassador Bhaswati Mukherjee and former Karnataka Additional Chief Secretary M. Madan Gopal, said the country's electoral system had evolved significantly from the days of booth capturing, ballot-box theft and voter intimidation.

Citing the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections, the former officials claimed that the state recorded its highest voter turnout since 1951, with women participating in record numbers, and witnessed no repolling. They attributed these outcomes to safeguards introduced by the ECI, including the deployment of polling agents, sealing of electronic voting machines (EVMs), security at strongrooms and verification of paper slips.

"Questioning is every citizen's right. Proving is the accuser's duty," the letter stated, emphasising that allegations of electoral malpractice should be pursued through established legal mechanisms, including objections to electoral rolls and election petitions before High Courts.

Defending the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the signatories said the exercise was necessary to remove ineligible entries and improve the accuracy of voter lists.

Referring to Bihar, they claimed that the revision identified around 22 lakh deceased electors, seven lakh duplicate entries and several lakh people who had permanently moved away. They also said approximately 21.5 lakh new voters were added during the process.

The former officials maintained that the revision included safeguards such as notices, hearings and appeals for people whose names were omitted from the electoral rolls.

They also referred to the Supreme Court's interventions in the SIR process, including directions regarding the publication of names excluded from draft electoral rolls, the filing of claims and the acceptance of Aadhaar as proof of identity. According to the signatories, the court had upheld the Election Commission's authority to conduct the exercise under Article 324 of the Constitution and the Representation of the People Act.

To support their argument that electoral outcomes were not predetermined, the signatories pointed to elections in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir, where the ruling party at the Centre lost. They also cited the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, in which the party failed to secure a majority on its own.

"A system cannot be honest when you win and rigged when you lose," the letter stated.

The former bureaucrats urged citizens to verify their names on electoral rolls and help family members, neighbours and migrant workers check their registration status. They said any omissions should be addressed through the prescribed claims and appeals process.

The signatories also acknowledged the work of Booth Level Officers (BLOs), many of whom are teachers and anganwadi workers, and cautioned that sweeping allegations of fraud could unfairly discredit officials responsible for maintaining electoral rolls.

The letter concluded by urging political leaders and citizens to continue questioning the electoral process while ensuring that allegations are supported by verifiable evidence.

"With faith in India's democracy and its citizens," the letter concluded.