New Delhi: The Opposition on Wednesday kicked up a storm, calling for the suspension and an immediate arrest of the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar after reports of alleged “irregularities in carrying out the special intensive revision (SIR)” came to light.
While the Opposition parties demanded the scrapping of the SIR exercise and sought repolls in states with the old electoral rolls, Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi reiterated the Congress “vote chori” charge and promised “justice”.
The Opposition questions the legality of the Election Commission’s (EC) decisions amid reports of differences over SIR.
According to reports, Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi flagged multiple issues, including the deletion of names, in various states during the voter roll cleanup, which Kumar apparently overruled.
Leading the Opposition’s charge against the SIR exercise, Gandhi, in a video, said, “Vote chori is a crime against the Indian people and a direct attack on our constitution.
The BJP, RSS and EC who organised it have committed an act of treason. Justice will be served.”
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that on April 24, 73 Opposition Rajya Sabha MPs had submitted a new notice of motion in the House to remove Kumar. “The Monsoon Session of Parliament has not yet been prorogued.
Will the Hon’ble Rajya Sabha Chairman now decide on that pending notice?” Kharge said, adding that the country will demand answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Shiv Sena(UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal demanded that Kumar should be jailed and immediately removed from his post and the SIR exercise be cancelled.
Former West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee demanded Kumar’s arrest and accused the Election Commission of working in favour of the BJP.
“Re-election must be held in West Bengal with the old voter list,” she added.
TMC’s Mamata Banerjee-led faction leader Abhishek Banerjee demanded the removal of Kumar and sought a court-monitored investigation into the functioning of the poll panel.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also demanded a repoll in Bihar and West Bengal.
Sharad Pawar-led NCP(SP) called for an immediate all-party meeting. Party MP Supriya Sule said the matter is “very, very serious” and requires an open discussion involving all political parties.
“This is not merely a political issue. It concerns the rights of every citizen of the country. It has now become a national issue,” Ms Sule said.
The INDIA bloc parties, sources claim, will meet early in October to plan a united strategy to take on the CEC.
Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal demanded immediate suspension of Kumar and added that elections held under his watch should be countermanded by the court.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) demanded an immediate halt to the SIR process and the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner.
In a statement, the CPI(M) Politburo said revelations raise serious questions not just about the SIR process but, more importantly, about the integrity of the Election Commission itself.
“This is no longer an Election Commission. It is a “one-man autocracy” under Kumar. Parliament must immediately start the process for the removal of the CEC,” CPM MP John Brittas said.
CPI general secretary D. Raja said Kumar must resign over the “electoral purge”.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said in Lucknow that governments formed during a period when the Election Commission was not functioning impartially are “unconstitutional”, and that the “interference” with the poll panel amounted to “trampling” democracy.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah said the Central government and Election Commission need to take corrective steps in order to prevent people from losing faith in the elections.
“Corrective action needs to be taken somewhere. Otherwise, if people lose faith in elections, what remains of democracy? Election is the very foundation of democracy…. So I believe the members of the Election Commission and the Government of India need to reflect on this,” the National Conference leader said.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
