The Supreme Court has sought responses from the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar regarding a plea filed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and 12 other opposition leaders concerning alleged large-scale voter deletions and Special Intensive Revision (SIR) irregularities.
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to resolve the contentious dispute between the rival factions of the All India Trinamool Congress over its party name and crucial 'flowers and grass' election symbol within three months of the completion of pleadings.
Hundreds of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) supporters and student activists held flash protests across Connaught Place, Palika Bazaar, and Mandi House on Friday, calling for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The demonstrations, which included slogans, placards, and participation from student bodies and Left leaders, led to significant police deployment, disruption of commercial activity, and the detention of CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke. Police had denied permission for the planned 'Lehra Do Tiranga' march, citing prohibitory orders.
Indian para-athlete Suvarna Raj won the gold medal in the women's F54 discus throw at the Asian Para Games in Nagoya, achieving a best effort of 15.66m.
It is too early to judge whether the CJP will become a consequential political movement or remain a moment of protest. Its significance will depend less on the size of crowds or the reach of online campaigns than on what follows when the initial excitement subsides, notes Manoj Mohanka.
The Calcutta High Court criticised the Election Commission for reassigning the 'envelope' symbol to the Democratic Trinamool Congress, previously used by the ISF, for the Nandigram by-election. Justice Krishna Rao questioned the EC's fairness, especially when 183 free symbols were available, and adjourned the hearing until Friday.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) organised a protest in Mumbai, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, despite police denying permission. The protest stems from alleged objections by other Election Commissioners regarding electoral roll decisions, though the Election Commission clarified all decisions were unanimous. Security forces were heavily deployed around Shivaji Park to manage the situation.
'If Gyanesh Kumar had some shame he would have resigned and would have taken agni pariksha.'
Bengaluru's electorate has significantly decreased by 43.13% to 59.08 lakh after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process and the publication of the final electoral roll on October 27. This reduction is largely due to deletions under the ASDDO category (Absent, Shifted, Dead, Duplicate, Others), with Bengaluru South and Mahadevapura seeing the highest number of removals. Despite the deletions, the Chief Electoral Officer assured that no eligible voter was removed and the process was transparent.
Trinamool Congress leader Saket Gokhale has accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of withholding details about the software and algorithm used for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Citing an RTI response, Gokhale highlighted the ECI's claim that the information relates to "commercial confidence, trade secrets and intellectual property matters," raising concerns about transparency in the electoral process.
The Election Commission has launched a special drive to include eligible citizens who were omitted or deleted during the recent Special Investigative Review (SIR) exercise, as well as to register new and young voters. This initiative follows accusations from opposition parties regarding disenfranchisement and aims to ensure no eligible citizen is left out of the electoral process.
Rahul Gandhi led a significant opposition protest in New Delhi, attempting to march to the Election Commission office to allege "vote chori" and demand the CEC's resignation. The protest resulted in a lockdown of Parliament Street, a standoff at the All India Radio premises, and detentions of several opposition MPs, drawing strong reactions from the ruling BJP.
The Bombay High Court's Goa bench has ruled that draft electoral rolls cannot be the sole basis for deleting names from voter lists, asserting that administrative software cannot supersede statutory laws. The court questioned the Election Commission of India's authority to delete voters without a hearing, highlighting concerns over the ERONET system's limitations and its potential to disenfranchise citizens.
Israel's Election Commission is counting 'double envelope' votes, with Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud projected to be the largest party but his bloc falling short of a majority. The opposition bloc, along with Arab parties, holds a potential majority, leading to calls for a Jewish-Arab coalition to form a government and keep Netanyahu out. Negotiations are set to begin as President Herzog urges against another election.
The Supreme Court has dismissed a plea challenging the resignations of six AIADMK MLAs who subsequently joined the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). The court affirmed that resignation and disqualification are distinct constitutional processes, upholding the Speaker's acceptance of the resignations and stating that the Speaker was not required to inquire into motives.
Opposition MPs from the INDIA bloc intensified their protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over 'vote chori' allegations, leading to the detention of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra by Delhi Police.
The INDIA bloc leaders are scheduled to meet President Droupadi Murmu on Friday evening to press for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. This demand stems from alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The opposition has been protesting for three days, culminating in a sit-in at Rajghat on Thursday, alleging "vote chori" and a "hijacking" of the country. The Election Commission has defended its procedures amidst reports of internal dissent regarding SIR decisions.
The Congress party staged nationwide protests, demanding the immediate arrest and removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The party accused the Election Commission of an "unprecedented attack" on voter equality through an alleged 'Mark VIP' feature and called for an independent review of decisions made under Kumar, citing objections from other commissioners regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee indicated her potential participation in a protest at Jantar Mantar on October 10, demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. She strongly criticised the BJP and the Election Commission over alleged electoral malpractices and "SIR anomalies" in Bengal. Banerjee also expressed solidarity with Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra regarding their treatment during recent protests and plans to approach President Droupadi Murmu.
The Election Commission of India has announced decisions addressing concerns raised by two election commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, over the past 10 months. These issues included changes to voter registration forms, access to the electoral roll database, the handling of Goa's 97 voters, communications issued without full commission approval, oversight of the IT division, and appeals against voter restoration. The EC has provided responses and outlined steps to resolve these internal disputes and improve transparency and compliance.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has accused DMK president M.K. Stalin of 'body-shaming' their Dharapuram bypoll candidate P. Satyabama during a campaign rally, petitioning the Election Commission to revoke his star campaigner status and impose a temporary ban.
The opposition INDIA bloc held a massive rally in Delhi, accusing the BJP of 'vote chori' and electoral irregularities, with Rahul Gandhi asserting that CEC Gyanesh Kumar will be jailed for treason and legal action will be taken against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Election Commission and the Centre regarding pleas alleging that the poll body made several decisions without the approval of the two election commissioners. The court stated it would annul any decisions found not to be in accordance with the law, while also refusing an interim order to restrain CEC Gyanesh Kumar from making decisions.
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka has reiterated the outfit's demand for CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation, alleging the exclusion of 13 crore names from electoral rolls and questioning the BJP's defence of Kumar. The CJP plans a nationwide protest starting October 2, vowing not to back down until Kumar resigns, and has launched the 'Election Commission Thik Karo' campaign. Ranka also accused the CEC of fraudulently redrawing constituencies in Assam to benefit the ruling party.
'In 2013-2014, Modi was asking for regime change. In fact, the words he used were, they should be pulled out and thrown away; ughadke phekna hai. That is part of democracy.'
The INDIA bloc is escalating its protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, planning further actions and seeking an urgent meeting with President Droupadi Murmu.
The Election Commission of India clarified to the Bombay High Court that the absence of a voter's name from a draft Special Intensive Revision (SIR) roll does not equate to deletion, as SIR is a fresh preparation of the electoral roll. This clarification came during a hearing on a writ petition filed by a Goa resident whose family's names were missing from the SIR roll. The court has reserved its verdict.
The Supreme Court has questioned the reliability of legislative majority as the sole determinant for political party ownership, especially when disqualification proceedings are pending against the very legislators forming that majority. This query arose during arguments concerning the Shiv Sena faction dispute between Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray.
The Congress party has demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging "vote chori" and treason, following a media report revealing that two other Election Commissioners had formally objected to decisions regarding the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge have accused the BJP, RSS, and EC of undermining democracy, citing concerns over voter list tampering and lack of transparency.
The Election Commission has removed an additional declaration related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) from the online voter enrolment Form 6 in states where the SIR process is complete. This decision follows internal objections from Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi regarding changes to the form and the process. The EC maintains the declaration was SIR-specific and not an amendment to Form 6 itself.
All India Students' Association (AISA) President Neha Bora has challenged a Delhi Police notice requiring her to execute a 'peace' bond, arguing it is vague and an attempt to suppress peaceful dissent.
When it pretends to be deaf, a situation can snowball into something it cannot contain. The government cannot dismiss public anger merely because protests are inconvenient or politically embarrassing, asserts Ramesh Menon.
The Supreme Court resumed hearing pleas challenging the Maharashtra Speaker's decision regarding the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena MLAs and the Election Commission's recognition of the Shinde faction as the "real" Shiv Sena. Senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, representing the Shinde camp, argued that the EC has jurisdiction under Article 324 to examine a party's democratic character and organisational structure, especially when the Thackeray faction's constitution was not registered with the poll panel. He emphasised that the Shinde faction's case is based on a split within the political party, not just its legislative wing, citing cadre discontent. The hearing remains inconclusive.
The Election Commission has clarified that its ECINet platform is decentralised, with statutory functions performed only by designated officials, not headquarters staff. This comes after concerns were raised about the centralisation of electoral roll databases. The EC also defended the legality of an additional declaration sought from new voters during the Special Intensive Revision, citing unanimous commission approval and a Supreme Court judgment.
Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has filed a plea in the Supreme Court challenging the Election Commission's interim decision to freeze the Trinamool Congress' name and party symbol. The EC had allotted separate names and symbols to two rival TMC factions ahead of upcoming bypolls, a move Banerjee has strongly criticised as a "black day" for democracy.
The Election Commission of India has told the Delhi high court that two voters, whose names were deleted from the electoral rolls after they could not complete the enumeration process during the Special Intensive Revision in the national capital, can fill Form 6 for redressal of their grievance.
The article details a history of internal disagreements among Election Commissioners in India, highlighting instances from 1993 to the present, including clashes between CECs and commissioners over various issues like removal recommendations, dissent notes, and affidavits, culminating in recent objections regarding voter list revisions.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi has highlighted a report indicating internal differences within the Election Commission of India, questioning why two Election Commissioners reportedly sought an appointment with the Cabinet Secretary. She alleged centralisation of power, lack of transparency in voter list processes, and raised concerns over the commissioners not signing a press release, demanding an investigation into these matters.
Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Sunday said that he and his associates would continue their efforts despite what he described as illegal arrests and detentions.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray accused Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of acting as a 'weapon' for the ruling BJP, while MNS leader Raj Thackeray demanded the cancellation of Maharashtra's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, amidst a large protest march in Mumbai.
