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Informist, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026

NEW DELHI – Indian National Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge Wednesday said Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar should either be removed or resign from his position as his integrity and intentions are questionable. Kharge raised concern about the functioning of the Election Commission of India, and put forth six demands at a meeting with the partners of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance. 

"Today our Chief Election Commissioner stands totally exposed. His two fellow members have written 14 times in 10 months! It questions his very integrity and intentions," he said in his opening remarks at the meeting with Opposition leaders. "Therefore, he should be removed from his position. If he has even an iota of Constitutional or moral shame left in him, he will resign himself and turn approver against the powers who are interfering in our ELECTORAL ROLLS!" he added. 

Kharge encouraged the alliance partners to demand the election commission to use pre-Special Intensive Revision, or SIR, electoral roll for future elections. "Complete transparency in every electoral-roll revision, including constituency-wise and booth-wise information on additions, deletions and corrections," the Congress leader said. 

The election commission should ensure that no eligible voter is excluded due to "administrative failures, inadequate documentation or lack of awareness", Kharge said. His fourth demand comprises voting through ballots instead of electronic voting machines.

The veteran leader vouched for a simple and accessible voter registration process for young citizens, especially first-time voters. He encouraged alliance partners to further demand "Institutional accountability and an Election Commission that commands confidence across the political spectrum." 

The Congress has demanded answers on electronic voting machines and raised the issue of voter-list manipulation and unexplained changes in electoral rolls, Kharge said. Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi held press conferences "with proof that it was done in Mahadevpura, Aland, Haryana and Maharashtra," he said. "Instead of acknowledging our complaints, the Commission looked the other way. In a democracy, institutions must earn public trust through transparency." 

Kharge accused the election commission of resorting to special intensive revision after the Congress "cornered" the institution "with enough data and proof". As the revision led to the exclusion of a large number of voters, requiring them to establish their eligibility again, "the burden must be on the System to ensure that no genuine voter is disenfranchised," he said. So far, the voting rights of nearly 133 million voters have been "snatched" by removing them from the voter list, he claimed. 

"No genuine Indian citizen should be forced out of the electoral process through an opaque, arbitrary or inadequately supervised exercise," he said, calling for an unequivocal position from INDIA alliance partners. "If names are deleted, we must know who was deleted. We must also know why," he said. "There can be no credible election without an Independent and impartial Election Commission as envisioned in Article 324 of the Constitution."

Now it is clear why Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought the ‘Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023', Kharge said. The Act led to the replacement of the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel of the Election Commission by a minister. It also provides blanket immunity to the Election Commission and chief election commissioner from any civil or criminal proceedings "for an act, thing, or word committed, done, or spoken while discharging official duty or function," he added. 

The immunity was provided "because PM Modi and Amit Shah want a rubber stamp who can help them remain in power," Kharge said. "In fact they are the real culprits. They broke several parties and election commission's role has been more of a facilitator rather than an impartial arbitrator," he added. 

Kharge also highlighted the Supreme Court's observation that "the inclusion of a Cabinet minister in the selection committee fails to provide the independent counterweight that a neutral selector could, and the Cabinet minister would merely echo the voice of his leader, and consequently, the presence of the leader of opposition in the selection committee becomes largely ornamental without furthering the purpose of his inclusion." The observation further emphasised, "It is not enough for the ECI to be independent; it must also appear to be independent."

Talking about the youth, Kharge said, "India has one of the world's largest young populations. By changing the rules in form 6 for enrolling for the first-time-voters by the Election Commission, the youngsters are deliberately being discouraged from voting,". It should be ensured that any new procedural requirement, creating unnecessary barriers for such voters must be immediately removed, he said.  End

Reported by Radhika Tiwari

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

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