Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar during an I.N.D.I.A. bloc meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday, alleging that the poll chief functions as a "rubber stamp" for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

Direct Allegations Against Electoral Leadership

Addressing opposition leaders, Kharge asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah specifically placed Gyanesh Kumar in his position to secure their political survival. According to the Congress president, allegations raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi have compromised Kumar’s standing, leaving him stripped of moral authority.

Kharge urged the Chief Election Commissioner to step down and turn approver against high-level figures interfering with national electoral rolls. He also raised concerns regarding the 2023 legislation that established the current selection framework and legal immunity for Chief Election Commissioners and Election Commissioners.

Demands for Paper Ballots Over EVMs

Framing Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) as instruments tailored to serve government needs, Kharge called on the unified Opposition to take a firm, unambiguous stand against their continued deployment in Indian elections.

"So we cannot allow them to use these machines any further, we must go back to ballot votes to restore faith and confidence in India’s election system."

Referencing prior statements by senior leader Rahul Gandhi, Kharge alleged that the ruling party utilizes machine-based voting strategically depending on whether it requires a direct victory, a hung assembly, or a planned loss. He emphasized that transitioning back to physical ballot papers remains necessary to re-establish public trust and safeguard the constitutional tenet of "one person, one vote, one value."

Controversy Over Massive Voter Roll Deletions

The opposition chief highlighted widespread irregularities linked to the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Kharge expressed grave concern over data indicating that 13.3 crore names were removed during the draft rolls phase, arguing that arbitrary administrative actions must not disenfranchise legitimate citizens.

He noted that previous evidence and data presented by Rahul Gandhi regarding vote tampering had been disregarded by election authorities, who instead instituted the SIR under the guise of updating voter lists. Kharge maintained that the legal and operational burden must rest on the electoral system to justify any exclusion, demanding complete transparency on which names were removed and the explicit grounds for each deletion.

Opposition Front Mobilization

The strategic gathering in the capital brought together prominent Opposition figures, including Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, alongside Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, to coordinate a joint agitation strategy.

Kharge emphasized that democratic sovereignty belongs strictly to the populace rather than those currently occupying office, insisting that transparent oversight must replace what he characterized as increasingly opaque election management.

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