New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS) The Congress on Friday staged nationwide protests to demand the resignation and arrest of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over ‘vote chori’ allegations, asserting that the party would not bow down until action is taken against him.
The allegations have gained momentum after a media report claimed differences within the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Several Congress leaders and workers were detained during the agitation, including the party’s Assam and Punjab chiefs Gaurav Gogoi and Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, respectively. Water cannons were also used to disperse the protesters across states.
In the national capital, the Youth Congress held a march demanding the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.
Delhi Congress President Devender Yadav said: “The demand is clear that Gyanesh Kumar must be arrested because he has murdered democracy. The essence of a democracy is lost when votes are stolen.”
“We clearly demand that Gyanesh Kumar resign and that the elections conducted over the past year undergo a review,” he added.
Mahila Congress President Alka Lamba recalled that the party, especially Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, has been speaking about the “theft of votes” for months now.
“On December 14, the ‘Vote Chor Gaddi Chhodo’ rally was held at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi. The entire Delhi was echoing with the slogan…Today, our only demand is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should seek Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. He should be arrested and sent to jail. The illegal decisions taken by him must be stopped and reversed,” Lambae told IANS.
Congress leaders and workers attempted to ‘gherao’ the Election Commission office in Chandigarh.
Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, who was being detained, told reporters: “We have all gathered here demanding the removal of Gyanesh Kumar and his arrest and imprisonment. Our protest is against the SIR. Votes are being stolen across the country, and 20 lakh votes have been deleted in Punjab…Our demand is that SIR should be cancelled and voting should take place without it.”
Congress Chandigarh President H.S. Lucky asserted that the party would continue the agitation despite the attempts being made by the police to stop them.
“The police are doing their duty and putting up barricades. Deploy the police, the Army, Income Tax, ED, or any other agency, but the way the people of the country have been wronged, they will not tolerate it. Gen-Z recently held a major protest at Jantar Mantar. Another major movement will emerge in the country. This protest will continue until Gyanesh Kumar resigns, just as (then-Union Education Minister) Dharmendra Pradhan did,” Lucky told IANS.
Security personnel also used water cannons to disperse agitators in Chandigarh.
Leading a protest march in Bhubaneswar, Odisha Congress President Bhakta Charan Das said: “This movement is against the stealing of votes, and Gyanesh Kumar will have to resign. Rahul Gandhi has been raising the issue of vote theft from the beginning, but no one was listening. Today, it has been proved how vote theft is taking place.”
Led by Bihar President Rajesh Ram, Congress workers in Patna marched towards the Election Commission office. However, police put up barricades near the Secretariat to stop them.
A heated scuffle broke out between the police and the workers as the latter attempted to break through the barricades and move forward. The police had to use water cannons to bring the situation under control.
Speaking to reporters during the agitation, Rajesh Ram said: “We are not afraid. We will continue to protest against Gyanesh Kumar, who is a criminal.”
Another protester alleged that police resorted to ‘lathi charge’.
Purnia MP Pappu Yadav also took part in the Congress protest in Patna. Criticising the Election Commission, he said: “They have committed an injustice against 13 crore people in Bengal, Bihar and Assam. How can they be allowed to go?”
Former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat took part in the Congress protest in Dehradun.
Congress state in-charge Kumari Selja said: “We are holding protests across the country. People have seen the revelations that have come out regarding the Chief Election Commissioner. The Election Commission is not functioning in the manner it should. There is no unanimity there, and it is not impartial.”
Similarly, Congress leaders and workers protested outside the Election Commission office in Shimla.
Congress Himachal Pradesh in-charge Rajni Patil also recalled Rahul Gandhi’s vote theft allegations, saying: “Now we are firmly convinced that there are irregularities in the elections…If things go on like this then the Constitution will be totally destroyed.”
Similar protests also took place in Assam’s Guwahati, where state chief and MP Gaurav Gogoi, along with other party members, was detained while trying to break through police barricades
–IANS
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