Findings unacceptable: KC Venugopal on ECI's reply to Cong on Haryana polls

After the Election Commission of India dismissed Congress' allegations regarding "irregularities" in the recent Haryana elections, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal refused to accept the Election Commission's findings, saying that their "comments are not acceptable."

He further said that the party is considering for legal options in this regard.

"We have given a letter to the Election Commission of India yesterday. The Election Commission's findings are not acceptable at all. Their comments are also not acceptable. We are going to take legal options on this," he said.

Earlier on November 1, the Congress submitted a "counter response" to the ECI, describing its initial reply as "generic" and focused on dismissing the complaints and their petitioners.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh shared the letter on X, stating, "The ECI gave a non-reply to INC India's specific complaints in 20 Vidhan Sabha constituencies in Haryana."

The party further remarked, "Not surprisingly, the ECI has given a clean chit to itself. Ordinarily, we would have left it there. However, the tone and tenor of the ECI's response, the language used, and the accusations levelled against the INC compel us to submit this counter-response."

The Congress also criticised the "pattern" outlined by the ECI in Paragraph 8 of its reply, calling it "disingenuous."

"The majority of issues raised concern the period between the announcement of the Model Code of Conduct and the end of the election, i.e., the date of counting. Grievances arise quickly, often within minutes, and sometimes only become apparent once results are declared or information from other booths can be compared. If not addressed on the ground, these issues become moot, leaving only the option of an Election Petition, which is a lengthy process that can take years to resolve," it stated.

The party added, "We approach the ECI with whatever information we possess, and the ECI, with its vast resources, examines and reviews this information to assess its accuracy. Often, the ECI finds our information correct; at other times, it does not. Yet we refrain from 'naming and shaming' the ECI after the election concludes."

On October 29, the ECI had categorically rejected the Congress's allegations, describing them as "baseless, misplaced, and devoid of facts.