NEW DELHI: BJP national general secretary Smriti Z Irani on Tuesday defended the Election Commission amid Congress’ demands for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and suspension of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), questioning the opposition party’s objections to duplicate and deceased names appearing on electoral rolls.She questioned whether Congress was raising similar concerns about the EC in states such as Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala and Karnataka, where the BJP is not in power. She also said the Election Commission strengthens India’s democratic framework and accused Congress of targeting the poll panel instead of introspecting over its electoral defeats.“The question arises: In states like Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala, and Karnataka, where the Bharatiya Janata Party is not in power, is the Congress leadership giving the Election Commission a clean chit, or is it questioning the Commission’s activities there as well?” she said.“If a name appears as a duplicate on the electoral roll, or if the name of a deceased person appears on the electoral roll, why does the Congress Party want it restored? Why does the Congress Party want duplicate names to remain on the electoral roll?… Why does the Congress Party want to ensure that duplicate names persist on the electoral rolls?…” Irani added.Irani also hit out at Congress over its reference to the Lahore Congress Session, bringing up the historical role of A.O. Hume.“I am astonished that today the Congress leadership cited the Lahore Congress Session. Since the Congress Party wishes to turn the pages of history, it should also turn to the page that reveals the party’s origins to the people of the country, specifically, how AO Hume, who served as Secretary for Revenue, Agriculture, and Commerce under the British Empire, shared a suggestion with the Viceroy that a political organization, the Congress Party, should be formed to safeguard the British Empire. The very Congress Party that was established to protect the British Empire is today attacking the Election Commission of India by citing the Lahore Congress Session. There could be nothing more shameful than this,” she said.The remarks came after the Congress Working Committee demanded the immediate removal of Kumar, suspension of the SIR and restoration of 13.30 crore names it claimed had been removed from electoral rolls. The party also demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resignation, alleging “match-fixing” between the Election Commission and the BJP-led government.Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said Rahul Gandhi had raised concerns about elections in Haryana, Karnataka and Maharashtra, claiming that subsequent developments had vindicated those concerns.“The elections in our country are not fair and transparent. They are match-fixing elections – match fixing between the Election Commission and PM-HM duo,” Ramesh said.
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The CWC resolution alleged that the SIR process raised serious concerns over the integrity and transparency of electoral rolls and demanded its immediate suspension. It also said the party would resist the issue in Parliament, courts and on the streets.The Congress’ demands came days after The Indian Express reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders concerning the SIR process.The EC has maintained that differing views and observations are a normal part of institutional deliberations and that its orders carry full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
