NEW DELHI: Congress on Friday upped the ante against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and put up posters demanding his removal in Delhi amid the ongoing row over the functioning of the poll panel and Special Intensive Revision of electoral list.Put up by the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee’s OBC department, the poster read, “Remove Gyanesh Kumar, save Election Commission.”This came a day after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi lashed out at Gyanesh Kumar after reports of differences within the poll body over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls sparked a political stir.Rahul accused the CEC of “vote chori, kanun chori, sanstha chori (vote theft, law theft, institutional theft)”, calling it an “act against the nation”.”The Election Commission is the institutional protector of the vote… I have shown it with proof, and there is already more than enough information to make this a 100% certainty that Indian elections, Lok Sabha elections, 2024 election, Vidhan Sabha elections are all being rigged,” he said, addressing a press conference.”I come from a political family, and I have spent more than 50 years in a political family… In India, there is a fundamental force called anti-incumbency that very quickly starts to resist any government. It does not spare anybody. Indira Gandhi won the Bangladesh war, was at the height of her popularity, and then suddenly, within a year or two, massive anti-incumbency, massive pressure,” he added.Meanwhile, police personnel have been deployed outside the Election Commission office in Delhi ahead of a protest demonstration by Delhi Congress over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and demands for the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.The Indian Youth Congress is also scheduled to hold a protest march from 5, Raisina Road to Jantar Mantar on Friday, demanding the resignation of Kumar.The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) on Thursday also launched a nationwide online citizens’ petition titled “Gyanesh, It’s Done Bro”, seeking action against the CEC and calling upon citizens, particularly young people, to participate in a campaign for electoral transparency and accountability.Join conversationView All Comments →Share your thoughts in the commentsInsightfulAgreeDisagreeSkepticalConcerningPromisingWorth ReadingBig DevelopmentPost CommentBe respectful · TOI community guidelinesAn Indian Express report has highlighted differences among members of the EC over the SIR of electoral rolls. The report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised formal objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period against decisions and orders related to electoral-roll processes.The Election Commission, however, described the queries and observations raised by its members as part of its routine internal process. It said written notes, technical inputs and internal scrutiny were standard mechanisms to check legal compliance and protect voters’ rights.The ECI further said all decisions taken by the Commission, including those related to SIR, had full legal backing and stressed that its final decisions were unanimous.Get the latest India News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.About the AuthorRohitashwa RanjanRohitashwa Ranjan is a digital journalist with The Times of India, where he decodes Indian politics as a carefully staged production with scripts, subtext and everything behind. His stories track elections, party dynamics and the things that often are buried beneath the headlines. When not parsing vote shares or alliances, he is usually reading between the lines, where the real story tends to reside.Read MoreEnd of ArticleFollow Us On Social MediaVideos“Terror, Theatrics Won’t Repay Loans”: India Hits Back At Pakistan At UNHRCBJP’s ₹529 Crore Poll Spending Revealed; Bengal Alone Accounted For ₹287 Crore, EC Data ShowsAjeet Bharti Faces Arrest Heat As Delhi HC Rejects Bail In Chandrashekhar Azad CaseIIT-Bombay Death Row: Parents Question CCTV Leak, Demand CBI Probe And Action Against OfficialsAnother Sexual Assault Case from Bihar: 4 Arrested In Samastipur After Video Surfaces OnlineRahul Gandhi Demands Gyanesh Kumar’s Resignation, Alleges ‘Vote Chori’ After ECI Rift Emerges’Justice Must Be Served’: Ladakh Marks One Year Since Deadly Leh Violence | WatchWhen The Umpires Clash: 10 Questions At The Heart Of The Election Commission-SIR Row21-Year Search Ends As Jamui Police Arrest Double Murder Accused While Raiding House Of His Son‘Anti-National’ Gyanesh Kumar Must Resign: CJP’s Dipke, Saurav Das List 3 Demands Amid SIR-EC Row123Hot PicksStock Market TodayBank strikeNEET PG ResultGold Rate TodayOctober 2026 School HolidaysMaharashtra School holidaySamastipur girl molestationTelangana school holidayMumbai-Pune ExpresswayCBSE Date SheetTop TrendingAsian Games Medal TallyRahul GandhiPowerball JackpotDelhi Hit and RunUP EncounterDonald TrumpPM ModiNaomi OsakaJoe ThomasSupreme Court
NEW DELHI: Congress on Friday upped the ante against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and put up posters demanding his removal in Delhi amid the ongoing row over the functioning of the poll panel and Special Intensive Revision of electoral list.Put up by the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee’s OBC department, the poster read, “Remove Gyanesh Kumar, save Election Commission.”This came a day after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi lashed out at Gyanesh Kumar after reports of differences within the poll body over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls sparked a political stir.Rahul accused the CEC of “vote chori, kanun chori, sanstha chori (vote theft, law theft, institutional theft)”, calling it an “act against the nation”.“The Election Commission is the institutional protector of the vote… I have shown it with proof, and there is already more than enough information to make this a 100% certainty that Indian elections, Lok Sabha elections, 2024 election, Vidhan Sabha elections are all being rigged,” he said, addressing a press conference.“I come from a political family, and I have spent more than 50 years in a political family… In India, there is a fundamental force called anti-incumbency that very quickly starts to resist any government. It does not spare anybody. Indira Gandhi won the Bangladesh war, was at the height of her popularity, and then suddenly, within a year or two, massive anti-incumbency, massive pressure,” he added.Meanwhile, police personnel have been deployed outside the Election Commission office in Delhi ahead of a protest demonstration by Delhi Congress over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and demands for the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.The Indian Youth Congress is also scheduled to hold a protest march from 5, Raisina Road to Jantar Mantar on Friday, demanding the resignation of Kumar.The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) on Thursday also launched a nationwide online citizens’ petition titled “Gyanesh, It’s Done Bro”, seeking action against the CEC and calling upon citizens, particularly young people, to participate in a campaign for electoral transparency and accountability.
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An Indian Express report has highlighted differences among members of the EC over the SIR of electoral rolls. The report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised formal objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period against decisions and orders related to electoral-roll processes.The Election Commission, however, described the queries and observations raised by its members as part of its routine internal process. It said written notes, technical inputs and internal scrutiny were standard mechanisms to check legal compliance and protect voters’ rights.The ECI further said all decisions taken by the Commission, including those related to SIR, had full legal backing and stressed that its final decisions were unanimous.
