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INDIA bloc leaders will meet through video conferencing on Thursday evening to discuss their strategy regarding the ongoing row involving Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, sources said.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will chair the meeting, they added. The meeting comes amid the Opposition's sustained campaign against alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and its demand for accountability from the Election Commission of India (ECI). The Opposition has accused the poll panel of facilitating the deletion of eligible voters from electoral rolls and has demanded Kumar's resignation. The Election Commission has maintained that it follows established procedures and has defended its role in conducting elections. Earlier, INDIA bloc leaders announced a joint action plan against the alleged irregularities, including protests under the "Save Democracy" campaign, a march towards the Election Commission headquarters and a rally in New Delhi on November 1. During one such protest on October 6, INDIA bloc MPs, led by Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, marched towards Nirvachan Sadan, the Election Commission's headquarters, demanding a meeting with the poll panel. However, Delhi Police stopped the march amid heavy barricading and detained several Opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. The leaders were later released. Following the protest, the ECI said it had been informed by Delhi Police that a delegation of around 240 MPs wanted to meet the Election Commissioners and submit a memorandum at the Parliament House Annexe. The poll panel described the proposed venue and manner of seeking the meeting as 'unusual' under its established protocol. Delhi Police said the march had not been given permission and cited prohibitory orders while explaining its action against the protesters. The Opposition subsequently escalated its campaign by approaching President Droupadi Murmu. A delegation of INDIA bloc leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Kharge, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and Samajwadi Party representatives, submitted a memorandum outlining their demands on October 9. The memorandum sought the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar, suspension of the SIR exercise, restoration of voters allegedly deleted from electoral rolls and a return to paper ballots. The Opposition also called for the repeal of the 2023 law providing immunity to the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners. At a meeting on October 13, INDIA bloc leaders reiterated their resolve to continue the campaign and said they would challenge the denotification of Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site. Meanwhile, Opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Kharge, have approached the Supreme Court challenging aspects of the SIR exercise. The Supreme Court on October 15 issued notices to the Election Commission, Kumar, and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi on petitions challenging aspects of the SIR exercise. It also agreed to examine Jantar Mantars denotification and directed Delhi Police to preserve protest CCTV footage amid allegations of excessive force. (ANI)
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