From Delhi to Jammu, Congress protests against Gyanesh Kumar; cops use water cannons

The Congress on Friday stepped up its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, holding protests in several parts of the country and demanding his resignation, removal and arrest over the controversy surrounding the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.From Delhi and Jammu to Bihar, Assam, Chandigarh, Telangana and other parts of the country, Congress leaders and workers took to the streets, staging protests outside Election Commission offices and at other locations, clashing with police and defying barricades.

Water cannons were used to disperse protesters in Patna and Chandigarh, while police fired tear gas shells in Manipur. In Guwahati, protesters broke through police barricades and several Congress workers, including party MP Gaurav Gogoi, were detained.

The protests were part of the Congress' nationwide campaign against Kumar, with the party demanding his resignation over reports of two other poll panel members' dissent against his decisions and other allegations related to the SIR exercise and the handling of electoral rolls.

In Delhi, members of the Indian Youth Congress staged a demonstration against Kumar. Congress workers also gathered at Jantar Mantar as part of the nationwide protest called by the party.

In Patna, police used water cannons to disperse Congress workers who were protesting against the CEC. The protesters raised slogans demanding Kumar's resignation and action against him.Similar scenes were witnessed in Chandigarh, where police used water cannons to disperse Congress workers during their demonstration. Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring were among other protestors detained.

In Guwahati, Congress leaders and workers staged a protest outside the state Election Commission office, where heavy police deployment was put in place.

The protesters broke through police barricades during the demonstration, following which several Congress workers were detained. Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi was among those detained.

"If PM Modi and Amit Shah think they can suppress the voice of people which we are raising against vote chori, using the police, then this is their biggest mistake," Gogoi said during the protest.

In Jammu, Congress leaders and workers held a protest demanding Kumar's resignation. Congress MP Syed Nasir Hussain was among those detained by police during the demonstration.

The issue also reached the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, where Congress MLAs staged a protest on the second day of the Assembly session. The legislators raised banners demanding the immediate resignation of Kumar.

In Dehradun, Congress workers staged a massive demonstration demanding Kumar's resignation. Heavy police deployment was made at the protest site.

Congress MP Kumari Selja led the demonstration.

In Manipur, Congress members staged a protest outside the office of the Chief Electoral Officer at Lamphel, demanding Kumar's resignation and arrest.

The protesters burnt effigies of the CEC and raised slogans against him. Police fired a few tear gas shells to disperse the agitators. They also demanded an independent review of decisions and changes made to electoral rolls during Kumar's tenure.

In Kolkata, Congress workers staged a demonstration demanding Kumar’s resignation. Similar protests were held in Lucknow, where party workers took to the streets against the CEC, and in Bhubaneswar, where Congress workers demonstrated over the same demand.

Congress workers also staged protests in Shimla, with party leaders demonstrating outside the Chief Electoral Officer's office over issues concerning the Election Commission.

Hyderabad also witnessed the Congress protests with leaders demanding a transparent investigation and seeking criminal action against Kumar if any violations or wrongdoing were established under law. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president Mahesh Kumar Goud and other party leaders led the agitation.Similar protests were held across the country, including in several state capitals, as the Congress stepped up its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

The nationwide demonstrations followed a report by The Indian Express that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record at least 14 times over a 10-month period to certain decisions and orders that they said had been issued without their knowledge.

According to the report, the objections related to several aspects of the electoral-roll revision process, including amendments to the statutory Form 6, the handling of additions and deletions from voter lists and centralised control over the electoral-roll database.

Another report claimed that as many as 97 eligible voters were left out of the final electoral roll in Goa, despite repeated requests from ground-level officials and the state Chief Electoral Officer to the central authorities for their inclusion. The report alleged that a centralised software used for the SIR process prevented their names from being added.

The reports have given fresh momentum to the Opposition's criticism of Kumar and the poll panel.

However, the Election Commission has defended its decision-making process and rejected the interpretation that the reported differences represented a breakdown within the poll panel.

The EC has said that differing views, observations and suggestions are a normal part of deliberations within an institution. It has maintained that all its orders have full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.- Ends