CPI(M)'s Thomas Isaac demands CEC's removal, alleges vote theft

CPI(M) leader T M Thomas Isaac demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of 'stealing votes for the BJP'. The demand comes as INDIA Bloc MPs protest the ECI over the electoral roll revision exercise.

CPI(M) Central Committee member and former Keralam Finance Minister T M Thomas Isaac on Tuesday demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging that he had been “stealing votes for the BJP” and calling for his resignation amid continuing opposition protests over electoral roll revision. “There is no way that CEC Gyanesh Kumar can continue. He has got to go. He has been stealing votes for the BJP. Therefore, there is no going back on this demand,” Isaac said.

INDIA Bloc Leads Protests Against ECI

His remarks came as INDIA Bloc MPs marched towards the Election Commission in Delhi as part of the opposition's ongoing protests over electoral roll revision and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. Isaac said the protest movement was not limited to political parties and claimed that MPs, youth and student groups were now participating in demonstrations against the Election Commission. “Today, the Members of Parliament marched. Youth and students are on the march. The opposition parties are on the streets,” he said.

The CPI(M) leader appealed for intervention to prevent the political confrontation from escalating. “Before this deteriorates into a major confrontation, some sanity should prevail at the headquarters in Delhi,” Isaac said.

Congress leaders staged a sit-in protest at Akashvani Bhawan after the leaders of several INDIA bloc parties were stopped during a march to the Nirvachan Sadan. The protest is part of a broader "Save Democracy" campaign announced by the Opposition, under which its leaders have been holding demonstrations and public programmes against the ECI.

Details of Electoral Revision Controversy

The fresh controversy stems from The Indian Express report, which claimed that two of the Election Commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, raised 14 objections during the SIR exercise. The ECI has maintained that the decisions were unanimous. The opposition leaders have raised questions over the modification in Form 6, after the Supreme Court on Monday said that it had not approved any modified version of Form 6 being used for enrolment of new voters during the SIR exercise. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)