The Madras High Court dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on Tuesday. The petition sought directions for the Election Commission of India (ECI) to clarify allegations of widespread manipulation of electoral rolls in the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

The plea referenced claims made by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi during a PowerPoint presentation and by former Union Minister Anurag Thakur in a press conference. The petitioner wanted the court to compel the ECI to clarify these claims.

However, a division bench called the petition "completely misconceived". The bench noted the petition had no concrete evidence to back the claims. The court remarked the case relied primarily on "allegations and counter-allegations made on certain platforms" and lacked verifiable proof.

"The petition, as it stands, is vague and lacks necessary details. No such direction to clarify its position can be given to the Election Commission," the court stated.

The bench also imposed costs of Rs 1,00,000 on the petitioner and directed the sum be paid to the Tamil Nadu State Legal Services Authority. The court also clarified it did not consider the substance of the allegations. The EC remains free to make its own decisions regarding the issues raised.

The dismissal effectively concludes the PIL but allows the ECI to independently address or investigate concerns related to the integrity of the electoral process.

Last month Rahul Gandhi in press conference accused the poll body of "colluding" with the BJP to "steal" over 100,000 votes in the Mahadevapura assembly segment of the Bangalore Central Lok Sabha seat during the 2024 general elections. Presenting his party's findings, Gandhi claimed a six-month analysis by a 40-member team uncovered thousands of duplicate entries, fake addresses, invalid photos, and suspicious Form 6 applications.

After Rahul Gandhi presentation, BJP MP Anurag Thakur claimed irregularities in voter registration in Rae Bareli, Wayanad, Diamond Harbour and Kannauj parliamentary seats and asked Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Abhishek Banerjee and Akhilesh Yadav to resign as Lok Sabha MPs, alleging they secured victory in elections with "vote chori".