Protests Erupt in New Delhi as Crowds Demand the Resignation of Election Chief
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Thousands of people gathered in New Delhi to call for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing recent voter list revisions of tilting the field toward the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
In New Delhi, thousands of protesters rallied to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, warning that the recent revisions to voter lists appear to be engineered to disproportionately benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The demonstration, led by Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, is part of sustained protests that have continued for more than a month.
Opposition parties say the removal of over 130 million names from the voter lists has hit Muslims and other minorities especially hard, reinforcing fears that the electoral machinery is being used to marginalize communities less likely to support the BJP. The Election Commission has rejected those allegations, saying that voters who were improperly removed can re-register.
Facing the growing outrage, the BJP accused opposition groups of undermining democracy by challenging what it called legitimate electoral procedures. Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda dismissed the rally as a “carefully orchestrated drama,” portraying it as a conspiracy to disturb national order while cloaking itself in democratic language.
As demonstrators marched toward the historic Ramlila Maidan, security was tightened, with hundreds of police deployed and some equipped with riot control gear. The protests have gathered force since concerns were first raised by Kumar’s deputies about the electoral roll revisions, marking a significant political challenge for Modi since he assumed office in 2014.