Tejashwi Yadav Alleges Bihar Electoral Fraud, Calls CEC a BJP 'Puppet'; BJP Hits Back
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) national working president and INDIA bloc leader Tejashwi Yadav on Monday (October 5, 2026) announced a series of protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging widespread irregularities in the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar and accusing the poll body of acting at the behest of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Mr. Yadav, who was accompanied by Kapil Dev Prasad Yadav of the Congress, Mukesh Sahani of the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), Ramnaresh Pandey of the Communist Party of India (CPI), Dhirendra Jha of CPI (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, Ajay Kumar of the CPI(M) and I.P. Gupta of the Indian Inclusive Party (IIP), outlined what he called an action plan against the Chief Election Commissioner.
According to the plan, INDIA bloc leaders in Bihar will hold an 'Aakrosh March' at the block level on October 7 against Mr. Kumar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. On October 8, the alliance will hold sit-in protests in all districts, followed by a demonstration at Lok Bhavan in Patna, to be led by Mr. Yadav, the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly.
The RJD leader said the INDIA bloc had decided at its Delhi meeting to launch a nationwide movement against what he described as a conspiracy by Mr. Modi, Mr. Shah and the Chief Election Commissioner to weaken democratic processes.
Mr. Yadav alleged that Mr. Kumar has become a "puppet" of the BJP. He cited what he said were irregularities during the SIR exercise, including the mass removal of voters' names from electoral rolls and eligible voters being wrongly marked as deceased.
He further claimed that ₹10,000 was deposited into women's bank accounts right up to election day, which he said violated the Model Code of Conduct and was intended to benefit the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the Bihar Assembly election. The RJD leader also alleged that ₹50,000 crore was siphoned from the State treasury to purchase votes.
"Voting records were previously retained for a year, but Gyanesh Kumar changed the rule to reduce this period to 45 days; this clearly reveals his intentions. There was electoral fraud in Bihar. The Commission is acting in the interest of the BJP," Mr. Yadav alleged.
He said the INDIA bloc was formed to safeguard democracy and that Mr. Kumar had acted at the instance of Mr. Modi and Mr. Shah. "Bihar is the 'Mother of Democracy', and Modi ji attempted to dismantle democracy. We will agitate to save democracy; after all, elections will lose meaning if democracy itself ceases to exist," he said, adding that the public has no faith in a government formed through what he called electoral fraud and the theft of people's votes.
BJP's response
Bihar BJP spokesperson Niraj Kumar Sharma rejected the allegations, saying Mr. Yadav was masking an agenda of bringing back 'Jungle Raj' by attacking a constitutional institution.
"His statement is not concerning democracy, but a frustration of being unable to digest the 2025 mandate. RJD, whose governance style was characterised by booth capturing, fielding bogus voters and swapping ballot boxes, is now labelling the Election Commission a 'puppet.' This is not an accusation; it is a confession," Mr. Sharma said.
He added: "Tejashwi Yadav is not set out to save democracy; rather, he has set out to discredit a clean voter list from which the names of the deceased, duplicates and those who have migrated have been removed."
Context
The special intensive revision is a door-to-door verification exercise of electoral rolls, with officials stating its aim as removing the names of deceased, duplicate and permanently shifted voters. Opposition parties across several States have alleged that the process has led to the wrongful deletion of eligible electors, a charge the poll body has previously rejected.
The specific claims made by Mr. Yadav — including the figures of ₹10,000 credited to women's accounts and ₹50,000 crore allegedly siphoned from the State treasury — have not been independently verified. The BJP's allegations regarding the RJD's past record are likewise contested by the RJD.
