Leaders of the INDIA opposition coalition are holding a meeting at the Constitutional Club in New Delhi to discuss a special review of the voter list of the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the recent controversies surrounding Gyanesh Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner.
Pressure on the Election Commission
Mallikarjun Kharge, the President of the Congress Party who leads this coalition, called for a review of the voter list that has been heavily debated and aims to verify the identity of hundreds of millions of voters in India. Kharge stated that "the vote belongs to the people" and the principle of "one person, one vote, one value" in Indian democracy is facing a "serious threat."
He expressed concern that "over 13.3 crore (133 million) voters have clearly been removed from the voter list" and this action has deprived the people of their power to participate in democracy. According to him, these voters should determine who comes to power, not those currently in power.
Criticism of the Chief Election Commissioner
This meeting comes after a report from an Indian media outlet that highlighted internal disputes within the Election Commission of India regarding decisions related to the special review of the voter list. This report sparked a political storm and protests for Gyanesh Kumar's resignation due to undermining the credibility of the ECI.
According to this report, other election commissioners, Sukhbiri Singh Sandhu and Vik Jashi, have raised at least 14 formal objections over 10 months regarding voter registration, deletions, and restorations, but these concerns have been ignored.
Kumar stated that all decisions of this commission are legal and that disagreements are part of the decision-making process. However, opposition parties and critics claim that this process has gone beyond its duties and has removed millions of eligible voters in favor of the ruling party led by Narendra Modi.
Mallikarjun Kharge also called for Kumar's resignation, stating that without an independent and impartial electoral body, no valid elections will be held. He expressed doubts about the credibility and intentions of the Chief Election Commissioner.
Last week, the Congress Party protested nationwide for Kumar's resignation, and the pressure group "Citizens for Justice and Peace" (CJP), which claims to have millions of supporters, announced that it would start nationwide protests if Kumar does not resign by October 2.
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