As controversy over the Election Commission intensifies across India, Prashant Kishor accuses the poll body of bias in favour of the BJP.
SEPTEMBER 26, 2026: Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor has sharply escalated his criticism of the Election Commission, alleging that the poll body’s functioning has helped the BJP prevail in closely contested constituencies and warning that questions over electoral integrity cannot be dismissed as routine political allegations.
Speaking in Patna, Kishor claimed that BJP candidates have benefited in constituencies where victory margins were only a few thousand votes, alleging that the Election Commission’s actions can become decisive when contests are extremely close. His remarks come amid the continuing political battle over electoral-roll revisions and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
Kishor also argued that concerns about the Election Commission predate the tenure of current Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. In remarks reported on September 25, he said the problems within the institution began before Kumar assumed the top post and cited the controversy surrounding former Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa as part of his argument.
The allegations have landed at a particularly charged moment. Opposition parties have been protesting against the SIR exercise and demanding greater transparency from the poll panel. In Patna on Friday, Congress workers protesting against the Election Commission were met with water cannons. The protesters alleged that electoral-roll changes could benefit the BJP and its allies, while demanding the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar.
The controversy is not confined to Bihar. In West Bengal, the Election Commission told the Supreme Court that 27.16 lakh voters had been removed from the electoral rolls during the SIR exercise, while more than 22 lakh had filed appeals seeking reinstatement. The Commission has said the deletions included entries involving people who were dead, had shifted, were absent or appeared to be duplicates, and has rejected claims that the exercise was designed to influence election results.
Kishor has also questioned the political consequences of electoral-roll changes in closely fought constituencies. His broader argument is that when the margin separating two candidates is small, even relatively limited changes in the electorate can become politically consequential.
The Election Commission, however, remains constitutionally responsible for administering elections, maintaining electoral rolls and overseeing the conduct of polls. Its official publications describe the ECI as an autonomous constitutional authority responsible for elections to Parliament, state legislatures and the offices of President and Vice-President.
Kishor’s intervention therefore puts the spotlight on a question larger than any individual election: how can voters be assured that electoral-roll revisions, polling procedures and counting are demonstrably neutral when political competition is decided by narrow margins?
The allegations remain claims by Kishor and other opposition figures, not established findings that the Election Commission deliberately favoured the BJP. But politically, the dispute is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore as protests, court proceedings and demands for greater transparency continue to converge around the electoral-roll revision process.
For an institution whose legitimacy ultimately rests on public confidence, the battle is no longer merely over voter lists. It is over whether citizens believe the machinery conducting their elections is operating independently, transparently and equally for every contestant.
The electoral machinery has become the most hotly contested contestant in the country.
JANPATH NEWS NETWORK (JNN)
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