Congress vows to continue protests against CEC Gyanesh Kumar until electoral system is reformed

The Congress party will continue its nationwide protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar until he is removed from office and the country's electoral system is made fair and transparent. Speaking in Alappuzha, AICC general secretary K.C. Venugopal stated that the agitation will only stop when steps are taken to make India's electoral processes completely impartial.

Protests and Campaign Plans

Protests are active across various states and districts, with only a short break expected during the Deepavali festival. Venugopal pointed to the November 1 rally in New Delhi as one of the country's strongest protests and said the party is fighting directly against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The party plans to launch a panchayat-level campaign called 'Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao' over the next month and a half. As part of this effort, a 'Vote Rakshak' will be appointed at every polling booth to check electoral rolls, find people whose names were removed, and visit their homes to help restore them. Venugopal also claimed that deleting names from voter lists deprives poor citizens of voting rights and government benefits linked to voter cards.

Parliament and State Issues

The Opposition plans to raise the issue strongly during the upcoming Parliament session alongside other public concerns, noting that protests during the previous session kept Amit Shah out of the House for nearly two weeks. Addressing state matters, Venugopal defended the Kerala administration's handling of allegations involving Excise Minister M. Liju and bar owners, stating that public figures naturally know people in their constituencies. He added that while former Excise Commissioner Seeram Sambasiva Rao should have spoken out about corruption while still in office, the government has agreed to examine his complaint.

Context

Chief Election Commissioners head the Election Commission of India, an independent constitutional body responsible for administering election processes in the country. Electoral roll revisions and voter list accuracy are central to ensuring that every eligible citizen can exercise their democratic franchise without administrative hurdles.