INDIA bloc leaders lead Delhi march demanding removal of Chief Election Commissioner

UPDATE - follow-up to Sonia, Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee among INDIA bloc leaders marching to Ramlila Maidan, demanding CEC's removal | LIVE: Senior INDIA bloc leaders marched in an open bus from Mallikarjun Kharge's residence to Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi for a mega rally demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral irregularities.

Charges And Protests

The alliance carried out a symbolic public impeachment of the Chief Election Commissioner after adopting a motion by a show of hands. Leaders levelled six charges against him, including conspiring with the ruling BJP to steal elections and deleting 13.2 crore voters through the special intensive revision of voter lists. Rahul Gandhi claimed that 15% of India's voters were removed from electoral rolls after the 2024 elections, and alleged that votes were stolen in multiple states including Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.

Leader Statements

TMC chief Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of looting Bengal and stated her party would fight the special intensive revision of electoral rolls. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused the BJP of trying to divide people and snatch their votes, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged that votes were stolen in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi criticised the rally, stating that leaders were spreading a fake narrative and defaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Context

Street protests and political rallies are common democratic methods used by opposition parties in India to mount pressure on constitutional authorities and the central government over policy disputes. The Election Commission of India is the independent constitutional body responsible for conducting elections across the country.