New Delhi: Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar continues to face mounting trouble amidst allegations of irregularities. Opposition political parties, along with various social and student organizations, remain adamant in their demand for his resignation. On October 10, the ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ staged a massive protest, resulting in the detention of thousands of people, including Abhijit Deepke, Ashutosh Ranka, and Saurabh Das.
On Monday, the INDIA bloc, including the Congress party,y is staging a massive protest in the capital, Delhi. Operations at six metro stations have been completely suspended until 4 PM due to the bloc’s demonstration. The opposition is conducting a foot march from Barakhamba to the Supreme Court. Several leaders, including the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, are travelling in a bus, followed by a large crowd of party workers. Police vigilance has also been significantly heightened.
Sloganeering outside the Constitution Club
The entire opposition appears united regarding the issue of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. MPs from the INDIA bloc have commenced their march from the Constitution Club. Prior to the march, slogans were raised against Gyanesh Kumar by the bloc’s MPs outside the venue.
Prominent opposition leaders including Dharmendra Yadav, Sanjay Raut, Arvind Sawant, and Mahua Moitra have joined the protest. Leaders from the parties comprising the INDIA alliance have previously taken to the streets to stage protests. The opposition is demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, alleging that the assembly elections were rigged.
BJP questions Congress leadership
The BJP has launched a scathing attack on Congress leader and Raebareli MP Rahul Gandhi. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan took Rahul Gandhi to task, stating that blaming constitutional institutions for election defeats is becoming a trend. He further remarked that staging protests after repeated electoral losses has become a habit for the Congress party. The reason for this lies not with the Election Commission, but with the Congress leadership. Furthermore, launching a scathing attack, he described the Congress leadership as directionless.
He remarked that the Congress party has been seen repeatedly attacking constitutional institutions over the years. The situation has now reached a point where blaming constitutional bodies for election defeats has become a trend; for them, facing repeated electoral losses followed by protests or taking to the streets has become the norm. This reflects the weakness of the Congress party.
CJP Issues 24-Hour Ultimatum
It is worth noting that the ‘Kankroch Janata Party’ (CJP) is also vocally demanding the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner. On October 10, three senior leaders of the CJP were detained. CJP leader Saurav Das has now stated that they will wait 24 hours for permission from the Delhi Police. If permission is not granted, they will be compelled to take to the streets. Das added that the Delhi Police has not yet provided any information regarding the course of action.
