Jantar Mantar, Kolkata, Chandigarh Streets: Congress Launches Nationwide Protest Against ECI

New Delhi: The Congress on Friday launched a nationwide protest against the Election Commission of India (ECI), with party workers taking to the streets in Delhi, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Patna, Guwahati and several other cities.

The demonstrations were organised following the party's call for protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Congress has demanded his removal and arrest and has raised questions over the conduct of electoral-roll revisions and the functioning of the poll panel.

The protests are taking place against the backdrop of reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections on several occasions over decisions related to electoral rolls and other election processes. The Election Commission has said such differences are part of the internal checks and balances of a multi-member constitutional body.

Congress workers protest at Jantar Mantar

In New Delhi, Congress workers and Indian Youth Congress members gathered at Jantar Mantar, raising slogans against Gyanesh Kumar.

The protesters demanded his resignation and action against him. The agitation forms part of the Congress's wider campaign over what the party describes as concerns about the Election Commission's functioning and electoral-roll revisions.

Congress has also been demanding an independent review of decisions and changes to electoral rolls made under the current Election Commission leadership.

Kolkata protest: March from College Street

In Kolkata, West Bengal Congress president Subhankar Sarkar led party workers in a march from the area outside Calcutta University's College Street campus towards the office of the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer on Strand Road.

The protesters were stopped at the B B Ganguly Street crossing amid heavy police deployment. Congress workers burnt an effigy of Gyanesh Kumar and raised demands including his arrest.

The Kolkata demonstration focused particularly on the party's objections to the electoral-roll revision process and its broader allegations concerning the Election Commission.

Chandigarh protesters take to Sector 17

In Chandigarh, Punjab Congress leaders and workers staged a demonstration in Sector 17.

Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring led the protest, with senior party leaders and legislators participating. The demonstrators raised concerns about transparency in the electoral process and the revision of voter lists.

The Chandigarh Youth Congress had also held a protest over the issue, burning an effigy of the CEC and demanding greater transparency and accountability in the functioning of the poll panel.

Water cannons used in Patna

In Patna, Congress workers marched towards the Election Commission's office and attempted to proceed beyond police barricades.

Police used water cannons to stop the protesters from moving further. Congress workers raised slogans against Gyanesh Kumar and demanded his removal.

According to Hindustan Times, Congress leaders in Bihar also alleged that the Election Commission had been compromised. Those are political allegations by the party and are not an established finding by the Election Commission or a court.

Leaders detained in Assam

In Guwahati, Assam Congress president and MP Gaurav Gogoi and several other party leaders were detained while attempting to cross police barricades during the protest, according to police.

The protesters had marched from the Congress state headquarters, Rajiv Bhawan, towards the Chief Electoral Officer's office.

Similar demonstrations were reported in Arunachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Manipur and Punjab, among other places.

Why is Congress protesting against the Election Commission?

The immediate trigger for the nationwide protests is the Congress's opposition to the functioning of the Election Commission and its handling of electoral-roll revisions.

The party's latest campaign follows a report by The Indian Express stating that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on record at least 14 times over a period of 10 months regarding certain decisions and orders. The report said some objections concerned the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and other election-related processes.

Congress has cited these reported objections while demanding greater transparency and accountability from the poll panel.

What has the Election Commission said?

The Election Commission has maintained that differences of opinion or objections are normal within a multi-member constitutional body.

The commission has also said that final decisions, including those concerning SIR, have been unanimous. It has described internal notes and objections as part of institutional checks and balances and cautioned against drawing conclusions from individual differences without considering the final decisions of the commission.

This creates two distinct positions in the current dispute: Congress is using the reported internal objections to demand changes in the poll panel, while the Election Commission says its decision-making process remains collective and its final decisions have been unanimous.

More protests planned on September 28

The Congress has announced a second phase of its protest programme.

According to the party's instructions issued on September 24, District Congress Committees are scheduled to organise protest marches at district collectorates on September 28. The party has said its demands include the removal of Gyanesh Kumar and an independent review of decisions and electoral-roll changes.

The protests therefore look set to continue as the political debate over electoral-roll revisions, the SIR exercise and the functioning of the Election Commission intensifies.