CEC Must Resign In The Interest Of Accountability: Shashi Tharoor
In an exclusive conversation, senior Congress leader and Member of Parliament Dr. Shashi Tharoor discusses the INDIA bloc's petition in the Supreme Court and ongoing protests against the Election Commission of India over the Special Summary Revision (SIR) process. Demanding the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner, Tharoor asserts that a tangible victory would mean helping restore the voting rights of Indian citizens. He criticises the widespread deletion of voters from electoral rolls, citing instances in West Bengal, Bihar, and Goa, and points out software issues preventing Electoral Registration Officers from restoring wrongly deleted names. Calling the scale of voter deletions preposterous and a threat to democratic integrity, Tharoor questions the rationale behind burdening voters to prove their eligibility. Rejecting claims that the opposition complains only after electoral losses, he highlights vigilance across parties in states like Kerala and maintains that the Election Commission has no business depriving citizens of their fundamental constitutional rights.