The INDIA bloc’s march towards the Election Commission of India (ECI) office in New Delhi was stopped by security personnel in front of the NITI Aayog building on Tuesday, as opposition MPs took to the streets demanding action over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, NCP-SP MP Supriya Sule and several other INDIA bloc MPs participated in the protest march towards Nirvachan Sadan.
The opposition leaders raised slogans demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The protest marks an escalation of the INDIA bloc’s campaign against the SIR and its demand for the resignation of the CEC.
Congress MP Dr Dharamveer Gandhi alleged that 13 crore voters had been deleted from electoral rolls and described it as the "biggest fraud in Indian political history." He accused the government of undermining democratic principles with the alleged cooperation of the poll panel leadership.
"We are going to fight to restore democracy and preserve the dignity of democratic institutions," Gandhi said while speaking to ANI.
Congress Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain said the opposition’s demands include the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar, scrapping of the SIR and restoration of voters allegedly removed from electoral rolls.
"There must be a high-level inquiry to expose who is behind this," Hussain said, alleging political interference in the functioning of the election machinery.
Hussain also claimed that concerns about the functioning of the poll panel had been raised from within the Election Commission itself, referring to the two Election Commissioners currently serving on the body.
The INDIA bloc has been conducting protests and public programmes under its broader 'Save Democracy' campaign, alleging discrepancies in electoral rolls and seeking greater transparency from the poll panel.
The march towards Nirvachan Sadan comes amid an ongoing political confrontation between the Opposition and the Election Commission over the SIR exercise and alleged voter deletions. The INDIA bloc leaders are seeking to press their demands before the poll panel, while the Election Commission and ruling BJP have rejected the Opposition’s allegations.
