CSDS Official Booked For 'False Claims' On Maharashtra Voter Figures

Nagpur Police filed an FIR against CSDS's Sanjay Kumar for social media posts alleging voter discrepancies in Maharashtra elections, amplified by Rahul Gandhi.

Psephologist and Lokniti-CSDS co-director Sanjay Kumar.

Source : X@sanjaycsds

The Nagpur Police has registered an FIR against Psephologist and Lokniti-Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) co-director Sanjay Kumar an official from the, over the 'voter theft' row. He was booked due to his controversial social media posts on the Maharashtra elections, claiming discrepancies in the Election Commission's figures, reported news agency ANI.

The FIR has been filed under multiple sections of the BNS, including sections 175, 353(1)(b), 212, and 340(1)(2), indicating charges related to false information and potential election-related violations.

What Sanjay Kumar Said

The row began when Sanjay Kumar claimed massive fluctuations in voter numbers between the 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Maharashtra. According to his post, Nashik West had seen a 47% rise in voters while Hingna recorded a 43% jump.

Congress leaders quickly amplified the figures. Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, used them to back his long-running charge of “vote chori” (vote theft) and accused the Election Commission of colluding with the BJP.

But soon after, Kumar deleted the post, admitting it was based on a “data misreading” and apologising. By then, the damage was already done. The BJP then slammed Rahul Gandhi for making a "false claim". Importantly, Rahul Gandhi in his June 7 column in The Indian Express cited the Election Commission's data and not the CSDS. 

The very institution whose data Rahul Gandhi leaned on to defame the voters of Maharashtra has now admitted that its figures were wrong — not just on Maharashtra, but even on SIR.

Where does this leave Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, which brazenly targeted the Election… pic.twitter.com/4o99YDvsMx

— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) August 19, 2025

ICSSR Slams CSDS

The Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) has accused the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) of attempting to undermine the credibility of the Election Commission of India (ECI) and violating funding norms. The research body, which funds CSDS, said it will soon issue a showcause notice to the New Delhi-based think tank.

In a statement posted on X, ICSSR said it had taken serious note of the controversy sparked by CSDS co-director Sanjay Kumar’s remarks on alleged voter number discrepancies in Maharashtra. Kumar later withdrew his claims, admitting to errors in data analysis.

It has come to the notice of ICSSR that an individual holding responsible position at CSDS, an ICSSR-funded research institute, has made media statements that had to be retracted subsequently citing glitches in data analysis regarding elections in Maharashtra.

Futher, the…

— Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) (@icssr) August 19, 2025

“It has come to the notice of ICSSR that an individual holding a responsible position at CSDS, an ICSSR-funded research institute, has made media statements that had to be retracted subsequently, citing glitches in data analysis regarding elections in Maharashtra,” the post read.

The council went further, accusing CSDS of “data manipulation” and of trying to build a narrative that undermines the sanctity of the Election Commission of India. It called this a “gross violation” of ICSSR’s Grant-in-Aid rules and confirmed that disciplinary action could follow once the show-cause notice is served.