Opposition steps up demand for Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over SIR

NEW DELHI: The Opposition has stepped up pressure for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over allegations surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The INDIA bloc will hold a meeting on September 30 to work towards broader Opposition unity, while the Congress Working Committee will meet tomorrow to discuss the issue involving Gyanesh.

The Election Commission’s emergency meeting and its announcement of certain relaxations in the SIR process were part of an attempt to withstand the mounting pressure.

The deadline set by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) for Gyanesh Kumar to resign ended on Saturday. The party has announced that it will begin an indefinite protest in Mumbai from October 2.

Leaders including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray are expected to attend the INDIA bloc meeting at Constitution Club in New Delhi on September 30. The DMK’s position is not clear.

The meeting is expected to discuss a possible impeachment motion against Gyanesh Kumar in Parliament and a joint protest, among other issues. The Opposition has already been seeking Kumar’s removal amid the controversy over the functioning of the Election Commission and the SIR exercise.

CPM and TMC to join hands

The CPM and Trinamool Congress, political rivals in West Bengal, will join hands against Gyanesh Kumar. CPM general secretary M. A. Baby said TMC leader and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had welcomed the effort to build a broader Opposition alliance. He said Mamata had responded positively to his letter and spoken to him over the phone. Mamata had also demanded Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation on Saturday.

Baby said the communication was issue-based and that it was not certain whether it would lead to a broader political understanding. The CPM has also written to parties including the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).

NDA ally JDS also questions Gyanesh Kumar

The JDS, an NDA ally, has also raised questions about Gyanesh Kumar. Union Minister and JDS leader H. D. Kumaraswamy said the Election Commission has a responsibility to clarify reports of differences within the poll panel.

“The country needs to know what is actually happening within the Commission,” Kumaraswamy said, adding that it should clarify whether there were differences among the Election Commissioners. He said the demand was not being made on behalf of any particular party or leader.

Other NDA allies, including Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) and Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP), had also spoken about differences within the Election Commission.