INDIA bloc seeks CEC’s removal at Vizag hunger strike
Members of the INDIA bloc, intellectuals and progressive organisations staged a rally and a hunger strike in Visakhapatnam on Saturday, demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral irregularities and concerns over the independence of the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The protest began at the Gurajada statue near the RTC Complex and ended at a hunger strike camp near the Gandhi statue outside the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) office. Protesters alleged that the poll panel had compromised its constitutional neutrality and was favouring the ruling party at the Centre.
Addressing the gathering, Andhra Intellectual Forum founder-president Chalasani Srinivas said free and fair elections were essential to the functioning of Indian democracy. He raised concerns over alleged discrepancies in voting percentages and Form-17C data, as well as the destruction of polling video footage after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
He also questioned changes to the appointment process for election commissioners and to voter roll management, alleging that these had undermined the ECI’s independence.
CPI state executive member J.V. Satyanarayana Murthy criticised the Commission’s response to allegations raised by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about voter roll irregularities in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura Assembly segment. He alleged that questions concerning duplicate entries and unverified addresses had not been adequately addressed.
CPI(M) district secretary M. Jaggunaidu raised concerns over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, claiming that nearly 65 lakh names had been excluded from the draft voter list. Protest leaders alleged that the exclusion of eligible voters had become a concern across the country.
The leaders appealed to the Supreme Court to intervene, sought Gyanesh Kumar’s removal and called for measures to protect the autonomy and credibility of the Election Commission.
Representatives of Congress, CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML) New Democracy, Praja Poru and the Aam Aadmi Party took part in the protest, along with members of the trade unions INTUC, AITUC and CITU, the student organisations SFI and AISF, and the youth organisation DYFI.