Around 343 Voter ID Cards Found Along Narmada River in MP, Congress Alleges ‘Vote Theft’ Conspiracy

Around 343 voter ID cards were found along the banks of the Narmada River in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone district on Sunday, prompting the Congress to demand an FIR and an impartial investigation into how the cards ended up there.

Preliminary information suggests the cards belong to the Rau Assembly constituency in Indore district, as per news report. The cards were discovered during a cleanliness drive along the riverbank, and residents alerted the local administration.

The Madhya Pradesh Congress reacted to the incident on social media, alleging a conspiracy to manipulate votes and questioning how voter ID cards issued in Indore reached Maheshwar in large numbers.

“Voter ID cards from Indore found in large numbers in Maheshwar!” the party said in its post, alleging that what it described as the BJP’s conspiracies involving vote theft were gradually coming to light.

The Congress also questioned who had dumped the cards and why? Also, whether voters’ rights were being compromised.

“Will the Election Commission, which has become a puppet of the BJP, conduct an impartial investigation into this serious matter, or will it continue to turn a blind eye, as it has allegedly done in the past?” The MP Congress asked in its post.

The allegations have not been established, and the circumstances in which the cards reached the riverbank remain unclear.

Congress Seeks FIR, Warns of Protest

District Congress president Ravi Naik, accompanied by party workers, approached the Mandleshwar police station and submitted a complaint demanding that an FIR be registered.

Naik questioned the Election Commission’s functioning and called for action against those responsible for the cards being found along the riverbank. The party also demanded a search operation involving divers to determine whether more voter ID cards had been discarded in the river.

“The Congress will gherao (surround) the police station if an FIR is not registered,” Naik warned.

Police Seize Voter ID Cards, Initiate Probe

Mandleshwar Sub-Divisional Officer of Police Shweta Shukla said the cards were found during the cleanliness drive along the Narmada, as per news report.

The revenue team seized the cards, and the police station in-charge was directed to investigate the matter, she said.

Shukla added that the police had received a complaint from the Congress.

Which Constituencies Are Involved?

Preliminary information indicates that the 343 cards belong to the Rau Assembly constituency in Indore district, which falls under the Indore Lok Sabha constituency.

The Rau Assembly seat is represented by BJP MLA Madhu Verma. Former Congress MLA Jitu Patwari previously represented the constituency.

Mandleshwar, where the cards were found, falls under the Maheshwar Assembly constituency, represented by BJP MLA Rajkumar Mev. The area is part of the Khargone Lok Sabha constituency, represented by BJP MP Gajendra Singh Patel.

The circumstances in which the cards reached the riverbank remain unclear.

Discovery Amid Row Over Electoral Rolls

The discovery comes amid opposition protests against the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, with parties alleging voter deletions and demanding greater transparency.

The Congress has called for the exercise to be halted, while the Election Commission has directed states to conduct special enrolment drives to include eligible voters. The investigation is expected to establish how the 343 voter ID cards reached the Narmada riverbank.