Congress Calls Review Meeting Following Bihar Election Defeat Amid Vote Theft Allegations

The meeting will take place at the Indira Bhawan on November 18. (File)

New Delhi:

Following the Bihar election setback and its "vote chori" allegations, the Congress party has scheduled a review meeting on November 18 for in-charges, state unit presidents, Congress Legislature Party leaders and secretaries from 12 states and Union territories currently undergoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

After suffering a decisive defeat in Bihar, where the NDA secured 202 seats compared to the Mahagathbandhan's mere 35, the Congress on Saturday raised questions about the Election Commission's (EC) role in the electoral process. This occurred during a meeting of senior leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and party president Mallikarjun Kharge, who convened to analyze the disappointing results.

According to a high-ranking party official, the review meeting involving AICC in-charges, Pradesh Congress Committee presidents, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leaders, and secretaries from the 12 states and Union territories undergoing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process will be held at the Indira Bhawan on November 18.

On Saturday, the Election Commission reported that over 95 percent of the 5.99 crore voters across nine states and three UTs have received enumeration forms as part of the ongoing SIR exercise.

In its daily SIR update, the electoral authority stated that more than 48.67 crore enumeration forms have been distributed across the 12 states and UTs — Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep.

Among these regions, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala, and West Bengal are scheduled for elections in 2026.

In Assam, which also faces elections in 2026, the revision of electoral rolls will be announced in a separate notification.

Phase-II of the SIR initiative began on November 4 with the enumeration stage and will continue through December 4.

On Friday, Rahul Gandhi described the Bihar election results as surprising and claimed that the election process was compromised from the beginning.

Gandhi also mentioned that Congress and the INDIA bloc would conduct a thorough investigation of the results.

The Congress party further alleged that the results undoubtedly indicate "vote chori on a gigantic scale - orchestrated by the prime minister, the home minister, the EC".

Gandhi's campaign against the BJP in Bihar centered around his allegations of "vote chori" (vote theft).