West Bengal Assembly Elections 2026| Rahul Gandhi's endorsement of Mamata Banerjee’s claim signals revival of ‘vote chori’ campaign

The top Congress leader asked his party men to “put petty politics aside” and “not to gloat” about TMC defeat in West Bengal.

New Delhi: Days after attacking Mamata Banerjee during election campaign, top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked his party men to “put petty politics aside” and “not to gloat” about Trinamool Congress’ (TMC) defeat in West Bengal, saying the “theft” of mandate is a “big step forward” by the BJP in its mission to destroy Indian democracy. 

Rahul’s repeated endorsement of Mamata’s claim that results in at least 100 seats were manipulated signalled the revival of the ‘vote chori’ campaign he initiated after the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 and it could see other Opposition leaders joining in, with AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal too raising questions over the results in West Bengal.

The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha had on Monday (May 4) night itself endorsed the former West Bengal Chief Minister's claim about election manipulation in the state, alleging that the elections in Assam and West Bengal were stolen by the BJP. Rahul’s terse tweet also comes as the I.N.D.I.A. bloc appeared fragile following the Congress’ attack on allies during the Assembly poll campaign.

On Tuesday (May 5) afternoon, he posted a warning on ‘X’, ‘some in the Congress, and others, are gloating about TMC’s loss. They need to understand this clearly -- the theft of Assam and Bengal’s mandate is a big step forward by the BJP in its mission to destroy Indian democracy. Put petty politics aside. This is not about one party or another. This is about India.”

Sources said Rahul and Trinamool Congress National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee had a telephonic conversation in the morning and they discussed election manipulation and stealing of people’s mandate.

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal also came out in support of TMC by posting on ‘X’, “In Delhi and Bengal that the BJP couldn't win even at the peak of the ‘Modi Wave’...in 2015 in Delhi and 2016 in Bengal, they got just 3-3 seats each. That very Delhi and Bengal, the BJP managed to win when Modi-ji's popularity was plummeting to rock bottom across the entire country... How?”

On Monday night, Rahul had said, “Assam and Bengal are clear cases of the election being stolen by the BJP with the support of the EC. We agree with Mamata-ji. More than 100 seats were stolen in Bengal. We have seen this playbook before: Madhya Pradesh. Haryana. Maharashtra. Lok Sabha 2024 etc. Election theft, institutional theft -- what other option is left now.”

Rahul’s directive to his partymen came even as he had attacked Mamata and TMC by accusing them of being in cohorts with BJP during the election campaign. 

The reading in the Opposition circles is that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal had impacted their prospects while gerrymandering in Assam through the delimitation in 2023 had gone against them.

In West Bengal, ruling TMC was decimated while the ruling BJP won over 200 seats while in Assam Congress was reduced to 19 seats while the saffron party retained power winning 82 seats. Rahul had not acknowledged that he spoke to Mamata, who was also defeated in her sitting seat, after the results were out though Congress confirmed that he spoke to her.

Earlier, he had claimed that there was "vote chori" in Lok Sabha elections in at least 100 seats which helped the BJP retain power. He had also alleged "vote chori" in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana also.

Pro-Opposition handles on 'X' have also raised questions about the defeat of three Chief Ministers -- Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur, M K Stalin in Kolathur and Arvind Kejriwal in New Delhi in the last less than one-and-half-years -- claiming that large number of votes were deleted from these constituencies.

In Kolathur where 1.02 lakh votes were deleted, Stalin lost by 8,795 votes while in Bhabhanipur where 51,105 votes. In 2025, Kejriwal lost by around 4,000 votes after 38,000 votes were deleted in New Delhi, the handles claimed.