The Indian National Congress has alleged that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) blocked their attempt to disseminate a documentary critical of the 2024 Maharashtra elections via SMS. The party claims that TRAI rejected their application to send SMS messages containing a link to a YouTube documentary titled "How the MH 2024 Election Was Stolen" to its Maharashtra cadre, citing the content as "related to protest".

Praveen Chakravarty, Chairman of the Congress' Data Analytics Department, stated that the party followed standard government procedures by applying for TRAI approval to send the documentary link via SMS to party members in Maharashtra. He shared a screenshot of the message from authorities rejecting the application. Chakravarty questioned the "perfect synchronization" between the Home Ministry, Election Commission, and TRAI in suppressing the information. He implied that this coordinated effort suggests a "telltale sign of guilt" regarding alleged fraud in the Maharashtra elections.

Congress leaders have strongly criticized TRAI's decision. Manickam Tagore, Congress whip in the Lok Sabha, called the situation "ridiculous" and questioned who controls the "censorship chain". He stated that suppressing the SMS would not suppress the truth and that increased censorship would only lead to more questions about what is being hidden regarding the 2024 Maharashtra elections.

Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress chief, accused the Election Commission (EC) of withholding information necessary to identify those responsible for "vote theft" in the Aland assembly seat in Karnataka. He claimed that "forged" Form 7 was used to remove voters ahead of the 2023 elections.

The Congress' allegations come amid ongoing claims of electoral irregularities in the 2024 Maharashtra polls. The party has accused the ruling BJP-led alliance of vote manipulation, including voter list tampering and institutional bias. The documentary in question purportedly supports these accusations.

TRAI has not yet responded to the Congress' claims. However, according to The Times of India, TRAI has denied Congress's allegation of rejecting their SMS application and clarified that it doesn't approve individual SMS templates and the rejection was by the service provider, STPL.

The situation raises concerns about freedom of expression and regulatory oversight in political communications, especially in India's digital media landscape. The Congress has accused TRAI of acting as the BJP's IT cell and questioned the coordinated efforts of government bodies to suppress information about alleged election fraud.