Election Commission Row Erupts Over SIR as Opposition Seeks CEC's Arrest
A report that two Election Commissioners objected 14 times in 10 months has sparked demands from opposition parties for action against CEC Gyanesh Kumar, with the BJP pushing back.
A political confrontation has broken out over the functioning of the Election Commission after a report indicated that two Election Commissioners raised objections on 14 occasions over a 10-month period to decisions affecting the electoral process.
The reported objections have become the flashpoint in a widening dispute centred on the conduct of the electoral machinery. Opposition parties have seized on the disclosures to demand action against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of electoral manipulation.
The row has drawn in parties across the political spectrum, with the Bharatiya Janata Party reacting to the opposition's demands. The controversy has also focused attention on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which has been at the centre of recent disputes over the electoral roll.
The developments have turned the internal functioning of the poll body into a subject of public and political debate, with the opposition pressing its case for accountability against the Chief Election Commissioner.