Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused the Election Commission (EC) of striking a “partnership with the BJP to steal votes”, as his Voter Adhikar Yatra in poll-bound Bihar was greeted by huge crowds in Nawada and Nalanda districts.

On the third day of his 16-day-long Yatra against the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Rahul entered Nawada flanked by the RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav and other Mahagathbandhan leaders atop an open jeep.

The Yatra started off in south Bihar’s Sasaram on Sunday and traversed through Aurangabad and Gaya amid a large turnout cheering for the Congress leader.

Addressing a gathering from atop the car at a village in Nawada, Rahul said: “Bhaiyon aur behno, Election Commission aur BJP ke beech mein partnership chal rahi hai. Yeh milkar vote chori kar rahe hain (Brothers and sisters, there is a partnership between the Election Commission and the BJP. They together are resorting to
vote theft).”

The Congress MP made the allegation after villager Subodh Kumar hopped onto Rahul’s vehicle and told the crowd that his name had been deleted from the draft voter list.

“My name is Subodh Kumar. I had voted in the last Lok Sabha polls, and I was also a polling agent. My name is not there in the draft list,” Subodh said.

Rahul took the microphone from him and told the crowd that the “election commissioner”, in collusion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Amit Shah, was trying to steal votes.

“Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and the election commissioner are trying to steal your right to vote. And, I, Tejashwi and other Opposition leaders want to tell them that we will not let even a single vote of Bihar be stolen,” the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said to a huge applause.

Videos of the Yatra passing through villages in Gaya, Nawada and Nalanda showed people greeting Rahul and other Opposition leaders with the Tricolour and showering garlands and flower petals on the jeep.

Standing beside Rahul, Tejashwi sought to project the Congress leader as the future Prime Minister. “In the elections that are round the corner, we will root out the NDA, which has been running a government like a ‘khatara’ (rickety) car,” Tejashwi said, calling upon the youth to vote for change to secure their future.

The RJD leader, who is being projected as the chief ministerial face of the Opposition alliance, told the crowd that Rahul had been giving “sleepless nights” to Modi.

“And, when the next Lok Sabha polls are held, we shall make Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister,” Tejashwi said.

After covering chief minister Nitish Kumar’s native Nalanda district, the Yatra will pass through several districts in the north of the state and conclude in Patna on September 1.

The BJD on Tuesday said the EC was not being as transparent as it should be. “Everyone is questioning their credibility because we have not received a proper reply to the issues we raised eight months back,” BJD MP Amar Patnaik said.