2 hrs ago
Congress Protests in Lucknow, Demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar Resign
Congress workers protested in Lucknow while it was raining heavily.
They wanted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to resign.
Congress said there were problems with the process used to check and update voter lists.
This process is called the Special Intensive Revision, or SIR.
The party alleged that some voters were deleted, others were added, and Form 6 records were changed.
Protesters marched from the Congress office but police stopped them with barricades.
A scuffle happened after some protesters climbed the barricades.
Several leaders and workers were taken to Eco Garden and later released, according to Congress.
Congress leaders and workers protested in Lucknow on Friday despite heavy rain, demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.
The party accused the Election Commission of “vote theft” and irregularities during the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Led by Rajendra Pal Gautam, Ajay Rai and Aradhana Mishra, protesters marched from the Congress office toward government and election offices.
Police stopped the march with barricades; protesters climbed them, and reports said a brief scuffle followed.
Several Congress leaders and workers were detained, taken to Eco Garden and later released, according to the party.
- Who
- Indian National Congress leaders and workers, including Rajendra Pal Gautam, Ajay Rai and Aradhana Mishra, protested against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
- What
- They demanded Kumar’s resignation and alleged electoral-roll irregularities, manipulation and “vote theft” during the Special Intensive Revision.
- Where
- The protest took place in Lucknow. Reports differed on the march’s intended destination, identifying the Chief Electoral Officer’s office at Janpath Market and the Assembly and Chief Minister’s residence; police stopped the march near the Sunni Waqf Board office on Mall Avenue or about 200 metres from the Congress office.
- When
- Friday; the detained protesters were reportedly released later that evening.
- Why
- Congress alleged that eligible voters’ names were deleted, names were added and Form 6 changes were made in ways that benefited the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress’s allegations
Reported police response
Electoral-roll process
Congress’s allegations
Congress alleged that the Special Intensive Revision involved voter deletions, additions and Form 6 changes that benefited the Bharatiya Janata Party, and accused the Election Commission of “vote theft.”
Reported police response
The articles report that police blocked the march with barricades, but do not provide a response from the Election Commission or Bharatiya Janata Party to Congress’s allegations.
Protest confrontation
Congress’s allegations
Congress said a brief scuffle occurred when its workers tried to cross the barricades.
Reported police response
Police stopped the protesters, and reports said some protesters climbed the barricades before the scuffle; several leaders and workers were detained.
Key facts
- Protest location
- Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
- Protest date
- Friday
- Main demand
- Resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar
- Central issue
- Alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls
- Protest leaders
- Rajendra Pal Gautam, Ajay Rai and Aradhana Mishra
- Police action
- Barricades stopped the march; several leaders and workers were detained
- Detention outcome
- Detainees were taken to Eco Garden and later released, according to Congress
Quotes
Rajendra Pal Gautam
Uttar Pradesh Congress in-charge and former minister who led the protest
“The Election Commission is an independent constitutional institution.”
freepressjournal.in
“Gyanesh Kumar is betraying the country. He should be in jail.”
freepressjournal.in
Sources
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