Opposition alliance to protest against Election Commission
The opposition has announced a united movement against the Election Commission over allegations of bias towards BJP.
The opposition has announced a joint movement regarding irregularities in the voter list and allegations against the Election Commission of working in favor of the BJP. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge informed after the INDIA alliance meeting on Wednesday that opposition MPs will march to the Election Commission headquarters in Delhi on October 6. He also announced that five major rallies will be held across the country in October and November.
In the meeting held in the capital, opposition leaders discussed a joint strategy against irregularities in the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of voter lists. The demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the outline of a nationwide movement on the issue of 'vote theft' were the main topics of discussion.
During the meeting, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge reiterated the demand for conducting elections using ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines (EVMs). He stated that all leaders of the INDIA alliance agree on this demand.
Kharge announced that,
a public meeting will be held in Delhi on November 1, 2026. He mentioned that the opposition will hold five rallies across the country to inform people how the government is taking away their voting rights and other constitutional rights.
Kharge said,
all laws brought by this 'theft government' should be repealed. He also appealed to the Supreme Court to expedite the hearing of all cases related to the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of the voter list and electoral irregularities.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said,
there was a good discussion in the INDIA alliance meeting. Our collective opinion is that Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, and Gyanesh Kumar have stolen the elections. We will not accept this quietly. Those who have destroyed Indian democracy will be punished, no matter how high their position is. I told opposition leaders that they are collectively the guardians of the Constitution.
Rahul Gandhi referred to opposition leaders as the collective guardians of the Constitution. He stated that the opposition will bring serious changes to the country together.
West Bengal's former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, present at the meeting, accused Gyanesh Kumar of being 'Vanish Kumar' and alleged that votes were stolen through the flawed SIR process. She also accused the BJP of autocracy.
According to media reports, Mamata Banerjee said in the meeting that,
now she cannot even step outside her home. BJP people can attack her at any time. She warned that if the Chief Election Commissioner does not resign, the movement will be intensified.
Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury stated that Rahul Gandhi is ready to fight this issue openly with all opposition parties. Chowdhury alleged that the scandals related to the Election Commission and vote theft have been exposed. He claimed that the government came to power by stealing votes. According to him, Rahul Gandhi has been raising this issue for years and has consistently brought it up in Parliament, on the streets, and in the Supreme Court.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also alleged large-scale rigging in the elections. He mentioned that this meeting was called to discuss the questions raised by two Election Commissioners and the irregularities. Yadav also accused of changes in laws to protect the Chief Election Commissioner.
NCP (Sharad Pawar) leader Jitendra Awhad reiterated Kharge's demand for conducting elections using ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines. He claimed that increased AI intervention has raised concerns about voting through machines. Awhad expressed apprehension that,
AI could be used to influence machines to achieve unwanted results. To support his argument, he cited voting data from the Maharashtra Assembly elections. According to him, voting was 6 percent at 12 noon, 9 percent at 2 PM, 30 percent at 3 PM, 39 percent at 5 PM, and 51 percent at 7 PM, which later increased to 64 percent. The party claimed that a similar trend was observed in several states.
NCP (Sharad Pawar) leader Awhad also accused Gyanesh Kumar of receiving legal protection.
CPI(M) General Secretary M.A. Baby stated that,
the Left Front wants to make this movement a broad people's movement. He said that small and large non-NDA parties, along with civil society, artists, writers, and cultural figures should also be included in this. Regarding the future structure of the alliance, he said that it is a separate issue, which also depends on the decisions of the concerned parties.
Senior leader of the Biju Janata Dal and Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Odisha Assembly Prasanna Acharya clarified that his party is neither a part of the INDIA alliance nor the NDA. He stated that maintaining equal distance from both is the party's policy. However, Naveen Patnaik has been demanding the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner from the beginning. Acharya accused of large-scale removal of names in the SIR.
Before the meeting, sources had told PTI that a draft for a new attempt to bring a proposal in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner was prepared. This was to be discussed for approval in the meeting.
The meeting included Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh, K.C. Venugopal, Mamata Banerjee, and leaders from the SP, Left parties, NCP, and Shiv Sena (UBT). The DMK and Aam Aadmi Party did not attend the meeting.
SP President Akhilesh Yadav also could not attend due to the nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. AAP MP Sanjay Singh stated that his party is not a part of the INDIA alliance but supports the proposal for the removal of Gyanesh Kumar and is fighting from the streets to Parliament.
It is noteworthy that the meeting took place at a time when aIndian Express investigative report revealed that Election Commissioners Sukbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised written objections at least 14 times regarding SIR-related decisions in the past ten months. According to them, some orders were issued without their knowledge or approval. The Commission responded that differing opinions are a normal part of institutional deliberation and that all its orders are in accordance with legal and prescribed procedures. The last meeting of the INDIA alliance was held on June 8.