Protests in India demand election chief’s resignation over voter-roll changes
Young demonstrators and opposition parties protested in Delhi and Mumbai for a third day, alleging that a nationwide voter-roll revision has removed eligible voters. The Election Commission and the governing BJP reject the accusation, while opposition parties plan further demonstrations and the commission says it is restoring omitted names.
Thousands of young protesters and opposition supporters demonstrated in New Delhi and Mumbai on Sunday, demanding the resignation of Election Commission chief Gyanesh Kumar and the reversal of changes to electoral rolls. In Mumbai, opposition leaders Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray led a protest calling for the revision exercise to be scrapped. In Delhi, police detained demonstrators as they gathered, according to a witness.
Officers had also detained protesters during the previous two days and transported some away by bus. Many of those detained were later released, although police registered cases against some people for allegedly breaching orders prohibiting mass gatherings in the capital. Police did not comment on the number or identities of those detained.
The protesters say a nationwide voter-roll review launched last year has removed millions of eligible voters. They allege the changes favour Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. The Election Commission and the BJP deny the allegations.
“The people of this country” should decide who holds power, Raj Thackeray said at the protest, criticising the Election Commission’s use of its authority. Kumar has not responded publicly to calls for his resignation or commented on the demonstrations. The Election Commission says the exercise is intended to remove duplicate, deceased or otherwise ineligible entries and protect the integrity of the rolls.
On Friday, it directed officials to register eligible voters who had been inadvertently omitted. The protests are expected to continue. An alliance of opposition parties plans a march to the Election Commission office on Monday under the slogan of saving democracy.
The Gen Z Cockroach Janta Party has also announced a major rally in Delhi for October 10.
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