Haryana ‘vote chori’: Woman named by Rahul Gandhi in presser with Brazilian model’s pic calls it propaganda

Amid allegations of widespread ‘vote chori’ in Haryana, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had claimed that duplicate voter entries included a Brazilian model’s photograph appearing multiple times on voter IDs. However, the women mentioned in the controversy, strongly denied any wrongdoing and called the allegations baseless.

Woman Denies Any Fraud

Pinky Juginder Kaushik, whose voter ID was reportedly linked to the Brazilian model’s photo, told India Today TV that the issue arose due to a long-standing photo misprint.

“I personally cast my vote in 2024. There was no vote theft,” Pinky said. She explained that when she first received her voter ID, it had a misprinted photo of another woman from her village. The card was returned, but a corrected copy never arrived. She used her voter slip and Aadhaar card to vote in the 2024 elections.

Pinky added, “The error likely originated at the level of the Booth Level Officer (BLO) or election office. The mistake was not ours. We had requested a correction as soon as the issue was discovered.”

Her brother-in-law also dismissed the allegations, calling them ‘propaganda’ and confirming that she voted personally.

Another Case Highlights Administrative Errors

Similarly, Munish Devi, another woman whose voter ID allegedly carried the same model’s image, also denied any irregularities. Her brother-in-law said Munish and her family had been voting from their ancestral village in Machroli, despite now residing in Sonipat.

“She cast her vote in 2024 along with my mother and sister-in-law. This was not a case of vote selling,” he said. He explained that Munish’s photo had been swapped once before, and election officials allowed her to vote after verifying her voter ID.

Rahul Gandhi’s Claims and Election Commission Response

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi alleged that roughly 25 lakh fake votes were cast in Haryana’s Assembly elections, about 12% of the state’s electorate. He claimed that his team identified over five lakh duplicate entries, including instances where a Brazilian model’s photograph appeared under different names such as ‘Seema’, ‘Sweety’, and ‘Saraswati’.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission rejected Gandhi’s claims, stating that no appeals had been filed against the electoral rolls in the state.