The INDIA bloc on Wednesday announced a coordinated nationwide campaign against the Election Commission over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, with Opposition parties deciding to hold district-level “Save Democracy” marches from October 2 to 8 and all Opposition MPs set to march to the Election Commission on October 6.
The decisions were announced by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge after a meeting of Opposition leaders in New Delhi that lasted around three hours. Leaders of 19 parties attended the meeting, while Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren joined virtually.
The Opposition parties also plan to seek an appointment with President Droupadi Murmu in the second week of October to submit a representation on their concerns regarding the electoral process and the functioning of the Election Commission.
Kharge said the district level campaign would involve young people, NGOs and other organisations, with demonstrations planned outside district magistrates’ offices between October 2 and 8.
On October 6, all Opposition MPs will march to the Election Commission, he announced.
The INDIA bloc has also decided to organise five major rallies across the country. The dates and venues for these rallies will be announced later. The campaign will culminate in a major rally in Delhi on November 1.
The Opposition has also decided to approach the Supreme Court and urge it to expedite pending cases relating to the SIR exercise and alleged electoral irregularities.
Kharge launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission while outlining the Opposition’s position, alleging that the poll body was being used as a “puppet” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He accused the government of attempting to manipulate the electoral process and alleged that the Opposition was being denied a level playing field.
“The real puppeteers” of the Election Commission were Modi and Shah, Kharge alleged, while describing the poll panel as being used as a front for what the Opposition calls “vote chori”.
The Congress president said the Opposition parties had unanimously agreed to fight together over the issue. The bloc also reiterated a set of demands concerning electoral rolls and the voting process. These include using pre-SIR electoral rolls for future elections, greater transparency in additions and deletions from voter lists, prior notice and an effective appeal mechanism before the removal of legitimate voters, and safeguards against exclusion caused by administrative shortcomings. Kharge also said the parties had agreed on the use of ballot papers instead of EVMs.
The meeting comes amid an intensifying political confrontation over the SIR exercise and recent reports about differences among Election Commissioners over decisions relating to the revision process. The Indian Express had reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised objections on record on multiple occasions to decisions and orders concerning SIR. The Election Commission has maintained that differences of opinion are a normal part of institutional deliberations and that its orders have full legal sanction.
Addressing the media after the meeting, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said the Opposition was united and warned that its agitation would intensify if Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar was not removed. Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, said the issue of “vote chori” had emerged as a central concern during the deliberations and said the Opposition would continue its campaign over what it described as threats to the country’s democratic institutions.
