The Congress on Friday, September 25, held protests in several parts of the country demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over concerns surrounding the revision of electoral rolls.
Protests were reported in Delhi, Patna, Guwahati, Chandigarh, Jammu, Kolkata, Imphal, Itanagar and other cities. Police detained Congress leaders and workers in some places and used water cannons to stop protesters in Delhi, Patna and Chandigarh.
The protests followed an investigation by The Indian Express which reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded at least 14 objections over 10 months to decisions and orders concerning electoral rolls, voter registration and the Election Commission’s technology systems.
Congress Protests in Delhi
In Delhi, Congress workers marched towards the Election Commission office. Several protesters were detained after they tried to cross police barricades.
Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav demanded Kumar’s resignation.
“Gyanesh Kumar must resign immediately. We are not going to let democracy be destroyed in India and sit silent, and the people responsible for this are going to be punished,” Yadav said.
Indian Youth Congress workers also held a separate demonstration in Delhi. Some protesters wore masks bearing Kumar’s face and had their hands bound in chains while raising slogans against the Election Commission.
IYC president Uday Bhanu Chib led the protest and demanded Kumar’s resignation, along with an investigation into the electoral process and the publication of the internal objections raised by Election Commission officials.
Protests in Patna, Assam and Chandigarh
In Patna, Congress workers marched towards the election office and police used water cannons to stop them.
In Guwahati, Assam Congress president Gaurav Gogoi and several party workers were detained after they attempted to cross police barricades while marching towards the Chief Electoral Officer’s office.
Congress workers also protested in Chandigarh, where police used water cannons after protesters attempted to cross barricades. Several leaders and workers were detained.
Similar demonstrations were reported in Jammu, Kolkata, Imphal, Itanagar, Dehradun, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Shimla and Hyderabad.
Dispute Over Electoral Roll Revision
The protests followed a The Indian Express investigation that reported repeated objections by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi during the Special Intensive Revision, or SIR, of electoral rolls.
According to the report, the objections concerned issues including changes to Form 6, which is used for new voter registration, the addition and deletion of names from electoral rolls and the centralisation of electoral roll data.
The two commissioners also raised concerns about access to electoral roll databases and the powers of officials responsible for maintaining voter records.
The Congress has used the report to demand Kumar’s resignation and a review of decisions taken during the SIR process.
Election Commission Rejects Internal Rift Claims
The Election Commission has said differences of opinion and suggestions are part of institutional deliberations. It has maintained that decisions of the Commission have legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
EC sources have also rejected suggestions of an internal rift and said decisions, including those concerning the SIR, were taken unanimously.
