LUCKNOW : Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha and Congress’ Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi, launched a scathing attack on Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday by reiterated his accusation of ‘vote theft’.

Rahul Gandhi is on a two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency. Talking to reporters before entering an event venue, Gandhi said, “The main slogan is ‘vote chor, gaddi chhod’ and that is being proved across the country. We will prove it again and again in more and more dramatic ways.”

While on the way to Rae Bareli, he stopped at an eatery and addressed the Congress workers, saying that earlier people used to smell rat in the electoral process but did not have evidence. “But now we have the evidence, and the vote theft is going on. We have to stop it,” he exhorted the party workers.

He added that despite producing the evidence and protesting vote theft, the EC was acting in an autocratic manner. “Under such adverse conditions, you did not leave the hand of Congress, and that is commendable,” said the Congress MP.

Earlier, he faced opposition in Rae Bareli when Uttar Pradesh Horticulture Minister Dinesh Pratap Singh and his supporters staged a sit-in chanting slogans like “go back Rahu Gandhi,” on Wednesday. The minister and his supporters sat on a dharna on the highway at Kathwara while Rahul Gandhi was on his way to Harchandpur.

The protest forced Gandhi’s convoy to stop nearly one kilometre from its destination. The minister was leading the protest over the use of abusive language against PM Modi and his mother at an election rally in Bihar recently.

The protestors were seeking an apology from Rahul Gandhi saying that Modi was the Prime Minister of the entire nation, including Rahul Gandhi. When police attempted to remove Minister Dinesh Singh, a brief scuffle ensued between his supporters and the authorities. The situation was eventually brought under control after police managed to convince the protesters to clear the road.

Earlier, on Wednesday morning, Rahul Gandhi, while on his way to his parliamentary constituency, met Samajwadi Party leaders at Harchandpur.

Ahead of Rahul’s visit, a poster by the state secretary of Lohia Vahini, Rahul Nirmal Bagi, had gained attention. The poster depicts Rahul, Akhilesh Yadav, and Tejashwi Yadav as the Hindu trinity—Brahma, Vishnu, and Mahesh.

The Congress MP will remain in Rae Bareli on September 10 and 11. During his visit, he will meet booth-level party workers, participate in ‘DISHA’ (District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee) meeting to review development schemes in the district before leaving for Delhi on Thursday.

This marks his sixth visit to Rae Bareli after the Lok Sabha elections. His previous visit to the constituency was on April 29-30. After his interaction with booth level workers of Congress, Rahul Gandhi will interact with people from Prajapati community to understand their problems.

He would also inaugurate the newly constructed Ashoka Pillar at the Gora Bazar intersection of Rae Bareli.

He will also plant trees at Veera Pasi forest in Mulihamau village to spread the message of environmental conservation and will conclude his day with a meeting with booth level workers in Unchahar Assembly segment.