New Delhi, June 12 -- Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar has defended India's electoral process, calling it one of the world's most transparent democratic exercises, in his first comments since Congress leaders accused the Election Commission of rigging the 2024 Maharashtra polls and manipulating electoral rolls. Delivering a keynote at the Stockholm International Conference on Electoral Integrity in Sweden on Tuesday evening, Kumar said India's electoral exercise - including the annual revision of rolls - is conducted under intense public and institutional scrutiny, describing it as "an act akin to concurrent auditing at every stage". The event, hosted by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), was attended by over 100 participants from election management bodies representing nearly 50 countries. Kumar highlighted the "robust mechanisms" underpinning India's electoral process, which he said have ensured its credibility for decades. "There is a process of statutory sharing of India's electoral roll with all recognised political parties every year during revision and before every election since 1960. It includes provisions for claims, objections, and appeals - making it one of the most rigorous and transparent electoral exercises globally," said Kumar, as quoted in an ECI press release. "This mechanism plays a vital role in reinforcing electoral credibility year after year." He also reaffirmed the Election Commission's role in supporting capacity-building initiatives for election management bodies worldwide. Kumar described India's democracy as the "strongest and biggest in the world", calling Indian elections "a wonder" for their unmatched diversity and scale. Back home, however, the Election Commission faces mounting criticism from the Congress party. The Opposition has questioned the sharp increase in voter turnout on November 20, 2024, as well as a sudden spike in the number of electors in Maharashtra. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, in a recent op-ed, accused the ECI of enabling "industrial-scale rigging" and described the Maharashtra elections as a "blueprint for rigging democracy." While the Commission dismissed the allegations as misinformation, neither the ECI nor the CEC had issued an official response until now....