Indian Opposition Demands Election Chief Resignation During New Delhi Protest
The demonstration came amid growing opposition criticism of the country’s voter-list revision process, which has been carried out across several states since it began last year. Opposition parties have alleged that the exercise has resulted in large numbers of eligible voters being removed from the electoral register.
The dispute intensified after reports emerged last month that two election commissioners had raised concerns with Kumar about decisions connected to the revision of voter lists. The issue has since become a major point of confrontation between the opposition and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Lawmakers from several opposition parties joined Tuesday’s march, including senior figures from the main opposition Indian National Congress. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge participated in the demonstration and said opposition parties would continue their campaign over the issue.
“We are doing this to protect your vote and your freedom,” he told reporters.
“It is not just the people of the INDIA bloc who are here; everyone has gathered here because they feel that their vote is being taken away and their freedom is being lost,” he said.
The INDIA alliance, a coalition of more than a dozen opposition parties, has announced additional demonstrations in the coming days as pressure grows over the voter-list revision process.
Authorities deployed hundreds of security personnel around the protest area in New Delhi and erected barricades to restrict movement near the site. Television footage showed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reaching an area close to the Election Commission office.
The Congress party also criticized the election authorities on social media, declaring that no vote could be stolen or silenced. “If the Modi govt thinks it can stop us, it is wrong. We will fight for every citizen’s right to vote, and Gyanesh Kumar will have to resign,” the party said.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party rejected the opposition’s accusations, accusing Congress of “trying to create anarchy” in the country by using the Election Commission as part of its political campaign.
BJP spokesperson and lawmaker Sambit Patra also defended the voter-list revision process, saying that “misinformation and fake news” were being circulated about the special intensive revision of electoral rolls.
The protest later escalated as opposition lawmakers said they were detained by authorities and prevented from reaching the Election Commission office.
“We are being detained and taken to an unknown location,” Trinamool Congress MP Sagarika Ghose wrote on social media. “Members of Parliament are being taken to an undisclosed location.”
The latest demonstration followed another protest in the capital last week, when hundreds of people were detained during a campaign organized by the newly established Cockroach Janta Party, which also demanded Kumar’s resignation.
The controversy has also reached the judiciary. India’s Supreme Court heard petitions on Monday challenging the functioning of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar as scrutiny of the election authorities continues.
The dispute comes several years before India’s next general election. The country last held nationwide parliamentary elections in 2024, while the next general polls are scheduled for 2029.
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