At the end of his Voter Adhikar Yatra in Patna, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi announced that his party would soon release a “hydrogen bomb” of evidence about vote theft. He claimed this would expose Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who would then be unable to show his face to the country.
Rahul Gandhi stated that vote theft was happening in elections, citing the Mahadevapura assembly in Karnataka as an example.
He explained that vote theft is not just about votes; it’s about “stealing rights, stealing democracy and stealing employment.” He warned that the BJP would take away people’s ration cards and other rights. The march, which marked the end of the 1,300-km Voter Adhikar Yatra covering 110 Assembly seats, brought together top leaders from the INDIA bloc.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav were among those who addressed the crowd. The march was scheduled to reach Baba Saheb Ambedkar s statue near the Patna High Court, but it was rescheduled and leaders addressed the gathering near Dak Bungalow roundabout. Kharge cautioned the people of Bihar about the intentions of PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, saying they would be “doomed” if they didn’t heed the warning. He criticised Modi for having time to visit other countries but not to visit Manipur. Kharge also claimed that the BJP and the RSS would “dump” Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar after the State elections and a new Opposition Government would come to power.
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav of the RJD called the Nitish Government a “copycat” for copying his policies and asked the crowd if they wanted a “duplicate CM or original CM,” once again positioning himself as the chief ministerial candidate for the INDIA bloc.
Other leaders, including Hemant Soren, Ashok Gehlot, Supriya Sule, D Raja, Dipankar Bhattacharya, Yusuf Pathan, and Sanjay Raut, also participated in the march.
The BJP quickly responded, with former Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad calling Rahul Gandhi’s “hydrogen bomb” comments “irresponsible.” He said Gandhi was “demeaning himself” and “insulting the nation’s voters.” Prasad also claimed that 20,000 people at the rally had been brought in from Uttar Pradesh.
The ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra,’ which began on August 17, was organized to protest the alleged “assault on people’s right to vote” through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. Opposition parties claim that around 65 lakh names were removed from voter lists, a matter that is now before the Supreme Court. While many people in the crowd may not have understood the specifics of SIR, there was a widespread belief that “something immoral is happening.”
CPI-ML supporters from Darbhanga highlighted a local police station in charge whose name was allegedly cut from the electoral roll. They stressed the importance of the rally, fearing many eligible voters would be disenfranchised.
An 88-year-old man, still marching with a CPI-ML flag, underscored the deep reach of the vote theft narrative. Dr. Prakash Kumar noted that even the Mushahar community, among the most marginalized, are discussing the alleged deletion of 65 lakh names, indicating widespread awareness.
The streets of Patna were a sea of Congress, RJD, and Left party flags. Vishwanath, a long-time paan shop owner near Gandhi Maidan, remarked on the sudden appearance of banners and posters overnight. An RJD supporter, Vishwanath Stated, “The narrative of vote chori has gone deeper to villages. This time, everyone wants a regime change.”
Vishwakarma Yadav, a handicapped student and RJD supporter en route to an exam, carried a large RJD flag and echoed the sentiment, alleging, “The BJP Government is omitting names of people from electoral rolls who don’t support them and adding names of people who support them.”
However, not all attendees were fully aware of the rally’s purpose. A group of women from Digha, Patna, mentioned they were told a ‘satsang’ (religious gathering) was happening, only to find themselves at a political protest.
The ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra,’ which began on August 17 in Sasaram, aimed to highlight alleged irregularities in Bihar’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Opposition parties contend that nearly 65 lakh names were removed from voter lists, an issue that has now reached the Supreme Court.