In the SIR issue, Congress workers held a march on Friday toward the offices of the Chief Electoral Officer in state capitals, demanding the immediate removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar from office and also calling for his arrest.
In several places, clashes broke out between Congress workers and the police as they tried to break through barricades. Police drove away the protesters by spraying water and firing tear gas shells. Senior Congress leaders and party workers were arrested.
Opposition parties raise a storm: An English newspaper reported last Wednesday that there had been intense differences of opinion between Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi over various decisions related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters’ list.
The report said that the Election Commissioners had registered their opposition to issues including the mass deletion of voters, changes made in Form 6, and control over centralizing the database, and that they had objected at least 14 times over the past 10 months, saying decisions were being taken without their knowledge.
In a situation where this issue has created a major political uproar, opposition parties have raised the banner of revolt against Gyanesh Kumar.
Congress rally: “For the crime of treason, Gyanesh Kumar should be immediately removed from office, arrested, and jailed; an independent inquiry should be conducted into the decisions he has taken,” the Congress said, as it held a rally on Friday toward the Election Commission office in Delhi and the offices of the Chief Electoral Officers in state capitals.
The protest was held in the capitals of states including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha, Punjab, and Assam.
Gaurav Gogoi, senior leaders arrested: In Assam capital Guwahati, the party’s state president Gaurav Gogoi and senior leaders were arrested after they tried to break through barricades and move from the Congress headquarters toward the office of the Chief Electoral Officer. In Odisha capital Bhubaneswar, Congress workers clashed with the police after their march was stopped.
Congress workers who staged a protest in front of the Chief Electoral Officer’s office in Manipur burned an effigy of Gyanesh Kumar. Following this, the police fired tear gas shells and drove the Congress workers away. In other states too, senior Congress leaders and party members who tried to break through barricades were arrested.
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The Election Commission’s
clear explanation is needed
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BJP alliance parties insist
The BJP alliance parties Lok Janshakti (Ram Vilas), Telugu Desam, and Rashtriya Lok Dal have urged the Election Commission to immediately provide a clear explanation regarding reports that two Election Commissioners had objected to decisions related to SIR.
Lok Janshakti (Ram Vilas) party leader and Union Minister Chirag Paswan said, “I do not support the allegations made by the opposition parties. At the same time, the Election Commission needs to provide a clear explanation for the doubts that have arisen among the people,” he said.
Rashtriya Lok Dal party leader Upendra Kushwaha, Telugu Desam senior leader Srikrishna Devarayalu, and others have echoed the same views.
