Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir Congress protested in the Jammu region on Monday, demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation and arrest over alleged “vote chori”.
In Jammu, the District Congress Committee Jammu Urban and Rural staged a protest at Shaheedi Chowk, where party workers raised slogans and carried placards before attempting to march towards the DC office.
Police stopped the march amid heavy deployment.
Former minister and DCC Jammu Urban president Yogesh Sawhney, who led the protest, demanded that decisions and orders taken during Kumar’s tenure as CEC be withdrawn and called for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resignation, holding the government accountable over the issue.
“Today we have four demands. First, we want Kumar’s resignation. Second, he should be jailed. Third, all decisions taken during his tenure should be withdrawn. Fourth, those behind these moves should also resign,” he said.
Addressing the protesters, Working President J&K Congress Raman Bhalla said the Election Commission must uphold its constitutional responsibility and ensure transparency in the electoral process. He said allegations about the integrity of elections could not be ignored and urged authorities to address the concerns raised by the opposition and the public through a transparent, credible process.
The protesters carried a symbolic handcuff and a poster depicting the CEC while raising slogans demanding his arrest. Bhalla said the Congress would continue its agitation until its demands were addressed.
Congress workers staged similar protests in Poonch and Udhampur, where the party raised concerns over the functioning of the Election Commission and demanded accountability over the alleged electoral irregularities.
In Poonch, scores of Congress workers marched towards the Deputy Commissioner’s office and protested against the CEC.
Similarly, in Udhampur, scores of Congress workers took out a march towards the Deputy Commissioner’s office and held a demonstration against the CEC.
The protests were also reported in Kathua, Samba, Ramban, Rajouri, and Doda districts.
DCC Jammu Rural president Neeraj Kundan and former minister Mula Ram, besides other senior leaders and workers, participated in the protest.
The protest demanding the CEC’s resignation came after an Indian Express investigation reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected on record at least 14 times over the last 10 months to decisions and orders they said were issued without their knowledge. The objections included changes to statutory voter registration Form 6 and the centralisation of control over the electoral roll database, according to the report.
The Election Commission, however, has asserted that its official orders, decisions and administrative directions have full legal sanction, and that differing views and observations are a normal part of deliberations within any institution.
