Senior Congress leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira has launched a scathing attack on the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab, condemning what he calls a "pre-planned hijacking" of the recently concluded block samiti and zila parishad elections. Khaira alleged a systematic and large-scale misuse of state machinery to undermine the democratic process.
Allegations of Orchestrated Fraud and Voter Suppression
Khaira described the entire electoral exercise as "nothing but a carefully orchestrated fraud." He claimed the fraud began with the wholesale rejection of nomination papers filed by opposition candidates, particularly from the Congress party. According to him, returning officers faced open pressure and intimidation, forcing them to act as political agents for the ruling party and denying a level playing field even before voting began.
The Congress leader further alleged a campaign of massive and selective deletion of voters' names from the official lists. He stated that thousands of genuine voters were disenfranchised without any prior notice, explanation, or due legal process, terming it an act of criminal voter suppression aimed at opposition supporters.
Misuse of Police and Flawed Counting Process
Khaira accused the state administration of weaponizing the police against political opponents. He specifically pointed to the Bholath constituency, where he claimed several Congress candidates were falsely implicated in fabricated criminal cases during the election period. These FIRs and police actions, he alleged, were deliberately timed to harass and intimidate candidates and their supporters, with the Punjab Police being misused as a tool for political vendetta.
Raising grave concerns about the counting of votes, Khaira labeled the process an "utter sham and daylight robbery of the people's mandate." He alleged that ballot papers were counted in the absence of duly appointed counting agents from opposition parties, in clear violation of established rules. Furthermore, he claimed that results of winning candidates were deliberately withheld until late at night to allow for tampering with the votes before the final announcement.
Failure of Election Commission and Congress's Next Steps
The senior Congress leader expressed deep concern over the role of the State Election Commission (SEC). He accused the constitutional body of failing in its duty as the guardian of democracy in Punjab, alleging both inaction and complicity. This failure, he said, has severely damaged public faith in the electoral process.
As a remedial measure, Sukhpal Singh Khaira demanded the immediate removal of the State Election Commissioner, citing gross inefficiency and dereliction of duty. He warned that such actions threaten the foundations of grassroots democracy in the state. Khaira concluded by asserting that the Congress party would explore all constitutional, legal, and democratic avenues to expose what he termed a large-scale electoral fraud perpetrated by the AAP government.
