Indian Opposition Leaders Meet Over Election Commission Dispute

Indian opposition leaders met in New Delhi on Wednesday to plan joint action against the Election Commission of India. The coalition is protesting voter list revisions and pushing for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

The meeting brought together members of the opposition INDIA alliance alongside parties such as the Aam Aadmi Party and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. Attendees discussed allegations of irregularities in the special intensive revision of electoral rolls. The parties claimed the revision led to large-scale voter deletions that favor the governing Bharatiya Janata Party.

The gathering followed nationwide demonstrations organized by the Indian National Congress and Left parties. Protesters in New Delhi, Jaipur, Srinagar and other cities called for Kumar to step down. Police in the capital used water cannons and detained several demonstrators marching toward the Election Commission headquarters.

The dispute grew after reports showed internal disagreements among election officials. Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had reportedly raised objections to roll deletions and changes to registration systems.

The Election Commission rejected allegations of bias and internal discord. The constitutional body said decisions regarding the voter revisions were taken unanimously by all three commissioners. Officials stated that the process is designed to remove duplicate entries and maintain accurate voter rolls.

Leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party defended the commission and accused the opposition of attacking constitutional institutions. Ruling party officials pointed out that the opposition had accepted election victories conducted under similar voter lists in states such as Kerala and Karnataka.

Opposition alliance representatives plan to finalize a formal notice seeking Kumar’s removal from office to submit in both houses of parliament.