SHIMLA: Himachal Pradesh Congress government on Wednesday staged a protest march to Lok Bhawan, the Governor’s residence, opposing the detention of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other INDIA bloc leaders during protest in New Delhi demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The march was led by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri, Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh, other ministers, MLAs and Congress workers. The protesters raised slogans against the detention of the two Gandhi leaders and voiced opposition to the Election Commission’s ongoing revision of electoral rolls.
Addressing the media, Sukhu said Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were exercising their democratic right by raising their voice against what the Congress alleges are irregularities in the electoral process. He questioned the action of Delhi Police in detaining the two leaders during the protest.
The Chief Minister said the demand for Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation was not confined to the Congress and claimed that opposition parties across the country were questioning the functioning of the Election Commission amid the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Opposition parties have alleged that the exercise could lead to wrongful deletion of eligible voters, while the Election Commission has maintained that the revision is aimed at ensuring cleaner and more accurate electoral rolls.
Sukhu alleged that large-scale “vote cutting” was taking place through the revision exercise and termed the issue of “vote cheating” a major political and democratic concern.
He further alleged that electoral manipulation was benefiting the BJP—an allegation that remains a political claim by the Congress and has been rejected by the BJP and questioned by the Election Commission.
The Chief Minister said the Himachal Pradesh Congress would continue its agitation in support of Rahul Gandhi’s campaign against the Election Commission and the demand for accountability over the voter-list revision.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and several other opposition leaders were detained by Delhi Police on Tuesday after an INDIA bloc march towards the Election Commission headquarters was stopped by barricades.
The leaders subsequently staged a prolonged sit-in at Akashvani Bhawan before being removed by police later in the evening. They were subsequently released.
Sukhu said Congress workers and the Himachal Pradesh government would stand with Rahul Gandhi in the continuing political campaign over electoral-roll revisions and the demand for the CEC’s resignation.
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