IndiaPosted at: Sep 24 2026 6:42PM


Rahul Gandhi steps up attack on CEC Gyanesh Kumar, demands resignation over ‘Vote Chori’

New Delhi, Sep 24 (UNI) Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday mounted his strongest attack yet on Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of acting against the interests of the country and demanding his immediate resignation amid the intensifying controversy over the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Addressing a press conference in New Delhi, Gandhi alleged that the integrity of the electoral process had been compromised and warned that what he called “vote chori” had implications far beyond individual elections. “We are not going to let democracy in India be destroyed and remain silent,” he said.
Gandhi described Kumar as a “traitor” and accused him of acting against the Indian state and its people. “A person destroying India’s vote is desh-drohi. This is an act against the Indian state and the people. We refuse to sit silent,” he said, reiterating his demand that the CEC resign.
His remarks came a day after an investigation by The Indian Express reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had placed objections on record at least 14 times over 10 months on a range of decisions concerning electoral rolls. The reported objections included changes to Form 6 for new voters, deletion and restoration of names, the handling and centralisation of voter data and decisions that the two Commissioners said had been taken without their knowledge.
The Election Commission has rejected the suggestion that the reported differences represented a breakdown in its functioning. It has maintained that written observations and differing views are a normal part of internal deliberations and said that all decisions taken by the Commission during the past year, including those relating to SIR, were unanimous. On Thursday, the poll panel also clarified that its September 23 press note defending its functioning had been issued with the approval of the full Commission.
Gandhi, however, said the reported objections by the two Election Commissioners had raised fundamental questions about the functioning of the poll panel and reinforced the Congress's longstanding allegations of “vote chori”, a charge the party has been making in connection with electoral processes in Maharashtra, Haryana and elsewhere.
“Two ECs have done a wise thing. Gyanesh Kumar should think seriously and turn approver. It will be in the country’s interest,” Gandhi said, while again calling for the CEC's resignation.
The Congress leader also questioned the process through which Kumar was appointed Chief Election Commissioner. Recalling the dissent he had recorded during the selection process, Gandhi said he had argued that the appointment mechanism should be independent and insulated from executive control, but that his objections were “junked”.
Gandhi then linked his allegations to a broader question about the BJP's electoral performance and what he described as the apparent disappearance of anti-incumbency in several states. Referring to statements by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union Home Minister Amit Shah about the BJP remaining in power for decades, he argued that such confidence was unusual in a democracy where governments traditionally face electoral pressure after being in office for extended periods.
“No political leader could be so confident in a democracy because of a fundamental force called anti-incumbency,” Gandhi said, citing the example of former prime minister Indira Gandhi and the political challenges she faced despite her popularity following the 1971 Bangladesh war.
He pointed to electoral changes in Haryana, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh to make his argument. “Haryana swings from one party to another for 50 years, but suddenly anti-incumbency disappears. Maharashtra swings; suddenly that disappears. Uttar Pradesh swings, from the Samajwadi Party to the Bahujan Samaj Party, that also disappears,” he said.
“We can understand the popularity of a person. We can understand the performance of a government. But we cannot understand how anti-incumbency disappears,” Gandhi added.
He said these questions had led the Congress to what it calls the “vote chori” explanation, arguing that the vote was not simply a mechanism for selecting a government but the foundation of India's constitutional and institutional order.
“Because from the vote, which is supposed to be protected by the Election Commission, our Constitution gets its power. From the Constitution, our laws are made. From our laws emerge our institutions. This is a chain, and this chain defines modern India,” Gandhi said.
“If the vote has been destroyed, then our Constitution has been destroyed. It no longer has its power, and it no longer functions. If our Constitution has been destroyed, our laws are illegal. And if our laws are illegal, our institutions are meaningless,” he asserted.
Gandhi described the alleged progression as “vote chori”, followed by “kanoon chori” and ultimately “sanstha chori” — his formulation for what he alleges is the theft of votes, followed by the erosion of the legitimacy of laws and institutions.
He also alleged that Prime Minister Modi and union Home Minister Shah would eventually face investigation over what he described as a conspiracy to manipulate elections. “Modi, Shah will be investigated for conspiracy to steal elections. We won’t let democracy be demolished. We will not remain silent,” he said.
The Opposition's campaign against the CEC has intensified following the reported internal objections within the Election Commission. Opposition parties have demanded Kumar's removal, a halt to the SIR exercise and an independent investigation into the functioning of the poll panel. Fresh moves seeking Kumar's removal have also been reported in Parliament.
The Congress has announced protest marches to state Election Commission offices on Friday and plans further deliberations on the issue, with its Working Committee scheduled to meet on September 29.
The controversy has consequently expanded from a dispute over the mechanics of electoral-roll revision into a larger political confrontation over the independence and credibility of the Election Commission. The Congress has portrayed the objections raised by Sandhu and Joshi as evidence of serious concerns within the poll panel, while the Commission maintains that internal observations are part of normal deliberation and that its final decisions have been unanimous.
“No matter what happens, we are not going to let this crime go unanswered,” Gandhi said, signalling that the Congress intends to continue its campaign around what it calls “vote chori” and the alleged weakening of safeguards governing India's electoral process. UNI SKA AAB
Tags: #Rahul Gandhi steps up attack on CEC Gyanesh Kumar# demands resignation over ‘Vote Chori’
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