Stalin Seeks CEC Gyanesh Kumar's Resignation, Halt to SIR of Electoral Rolls

DMK president and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Wednesday called for the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, pointing to media reports that decisions within the poll body were taken without the concurrence of the other two Election Commissioners.

In a post on X, Mr. Stalin also urged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls be halted and that a fair and thorough investigation be conducted into the functioning of the Election Commission, with those found responsible held accountable.

Citing a media report, he said it raised serious doubts over the outcome of every Assembly election held after the SIR exercise. According to him, the report indicated that the Chief Election Commissioner had been acting unilaterally and in secrecy, and that Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi were kept unaware of crucial decisions taken within the institution they jointly oversee.

Mr. Stalin said their objections to decisions taken without their knowledge were set aside on as many as 14 occasions over a span of ten months, which he argued had severely eroded the credibility of the Election Commission.

Describing the Commission as a three-member body whose business should, as far as possible, be transacted unanimously, he said that where commissioners differ, decisions must rest on the majority view. If two of the three members were themselves unaware of actions taken in the Commission's name, he said, it could not be treated as a mere internal or procedural matter, but amounted to a grave assault on Indian democracy.

He further said the revelations concerning the electoral rolls were equally disturbing, asking who authorised and filed appeals against the inclusion of voters even after courts had ordered that their names be added. The two Election Commissioners, he noted, say they were kept in the dark.

Mr. Stalin pointed out that the law empowers Electoral Registration Officers to scrutinise and revise electoral rolls, yet they were unable to add even those duly found eligible to vote. ERONet, the digital platform through which such changes had to be made, was entirely under the control of one person, he said.

He added that when such concerns are raised by two serving Election Commissioners, the extent of possible political interference within the Commission becomes evident. Recalling that the DMK and other Opposition parties had moved an impeachment motion against the Chief Election Commissioner as early as March this year, he said Mr. Kumar has no right to continue in office and must go immediately.

The DMK and other Opposition parties have consistently opposed the deletion of crores of voters from the electoral rolls in the name of SIR. Mr. Stalin said the exercise, rushed through months ahead of elections in State after State, was riddled with irregularities and sparked widespread unrest, particularly in West Bengal.