Following his allegations of "match-fixing" in the Maharashtra Assembly elections held in November 2024, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has intensified his criticism of the Election Commission of India (ECI). Gandhi is demanding that the ECI publish the voter rolls and CCTV footage from polling booths after 5 pm to ensure transparency.

Gandhi's accusations, made in an op-ed published in a national newspaper, outline a five-step strategy allegedly employed to rig the elections. These steps include rigging the panel for appointing Election Commissioners, adding fake voters to the rolls, inflating voter turnout, targeting fraudulent voting in key constituencies, and suppressing evidence. He also criticized the new law governing the appointment of Election Commissioners, deeming the selection committee as heavily tilted in favor of the ruling party. Gandhi claims the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) executed this strategy to manipulate the election outcome. The Mahayuti alliance of BJP, Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, and Ajit Pawar's NCP secured a decisive victory with 235 out of 288 seats, with the BJP winning 132, its best-ever performance in the state.

Specifically, Gandhi points to an unusual surge in voter turnout towards the end of the polling day. He claims that the final turnout saw a last-minute spike of 7.83 percentage points, equivalent to 76 lakh votes, after voting officially ended. He alleges that this targeted fraudulent voting occurred in key constituencies, and evidence was subsequently suppressed to mask the manipulation. He also claimed that the number of registered voters in Maharashtra in the 2019 Vidhan Sabha elections was 8.98 crore, which rose to 9.29 crore for the May 2024 Lok Sabha elections. By the November 2024 Vidhan Sabha elections, the number had leaped to 9.70 crore.

The ECI has strongly refuted Gandhi's claims, dismissing them as "unsubstantiated allegations" and an "affront to the rule of law." The Election Commission stated that it had already addressed these issues in detail in its reply to the Indian National Congress on December 24, 2024, and that the response is publicly available on the ECI website. The ECI insists that the electoral rolls are prepared according to the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. The ECI emphasized that Special Summary Revisions of the Electoral Rolls are conducted either just before the elections or once every year, and a final copy of the Electoral Rolls is handed over to all national and state political parties, including the Indian National Congress (INC).

The ECI also addressed concerns about the increase in voter turnout from 5 pm to the end of polling. The poll body explained that an increase in voter turnout from 5 pm to 11:45 pm is normal as part of the process of aggregation of voter turnout. The ECI clarified that the average voting rate is 58 lakh votes per hour and that up to 1.16 crore votes could have been cast in the final two hours. They stated that the 65 lakh votes recorded in the final two hours of the Maharashtra elections were actually below average.

The ECI has expressed its disappointment with Gandhi's continued allegations, stating that they disregard established facts and disrespect the electoral process and the staff involved in the elections. The poll body also pointed out that after the finalization of the Electoral Rolls during the Maharashtra elections, only a small number of appeals were filed before the appellate authorities.

Union Health Minister JP Nadda also responded to Gandhi's claims, presenting his own "five-step guide" for "manufacturing fake narratives."

Gandhi, however, remains firm in his demand for the ECI to release voter rolls and CCTV footage from Maharashtra polling booths after 5 pm. He argues that this is necessary to ensure transparency and address the concerns he has raised about the integrity of the electoral process. He also warned that the alleged "match-fixing" seen in Maharashtra could be replicated in other states, including Bihar, where assembly polls are due later this year.