Anti-BJP votes being deleted across India: Kejriwal

The Election Commission on Thursday came in for criticism following complaints about the deletion of names from voters' list with AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal claiming that anti-BJP votes were being omitted across the country.

Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal continuously targeted the EC on Twitter as allegations poured in over deletion of names from voters' list despite many of them voting in previous elections.

"Anti-BJP votes deleted all across India...Reports coming from all across India that votes have been deleted on an unprecedented scale...Why are all faulty EVM machines seen to be voting always for BJP? Why do most deleted voters turn out to be anti-BJP voters?" he said in a series of tweets.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia too joined him and referred to AAP's complaint that thousands of numbers were deleted from the electoral rolls in the national capital, which the EC had denied.

"Dear ECI! We have been reporting this to you for the last one year. But you said no votes deleted. Just because BJP was there behind all such illegal deletions? Now! What is this? A person living on the same address for 19 years is not able to vote. Why are you killing democracy?"

"Election Commission of India! Please see what you are doing to 'Voters of India'. So many people reporting about the illegal deletion of their own votes. Is this the way you want to serve India? This nothing but serving BJP," he said in another tweet.

Kejriwal and Sisodia shared a series of tweets by people whose names were not in the electoral rolls despite voting earlier.

One of the prominent persons whose name deleted was Shobana Kamineni, the Executive Vice Chairperson of Apollo Hospitals Group and former president of Confederation of Indian Industry.

In a video posted on Twitter, Kamineni, who returned from abroad only to vote said, "this is the worst day as an Indian citizen...I came to the booth and I am told my vote is deleted...Is my vote not important."

Her daughter Upasana Konidela tweeted, "My mom wasn't able to vote today. She checked 10 days ago and her name was on the list! Now it’s deleted !! She pays Tax! Doesn’t she count? Isn’t she valued as an Indian citizen."