Congress steps up agitation for removal of Chief Election Commissioner

Transport and BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Tuesday warned that the Congress would not remain silent if eligible voters were denied their fundamental right to vote, even as Telangana Youth Congress cadres staged a protest outside the State Chief Electoral Officer’s office here demanding the removal and arrest of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

Speaking to the media at Sriramulapalli in Koheda mandal of Siddipet district, Mr. Prabhakar alleged that votes of poor and eligible people in rural areas were being removed in the name of revision of electoral rolls. He accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) failing to function independently and alleged that it was acting under the influence of the Centre.

He condemned the detention of Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi during their protest in Delhi against alleged irregularities in the electoral process, describing the action as undemocratic. He said the Congress would intensify its ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’ campaign from the village level to protect the voting rights of every citizen.

Meanwhile, Telangana Youth Congress president Jakkidi Shiva Charan Reddy led the protest outside the Telangana CEO’s office and demanded his immediate arrest. Mr. Reddy alleged that the CEC was acting in the interests of the BJP and RSS and claimed that nearly 14 crore votes had been removed across the country without due procedure.

He said the Youth Congress would organise protests across Telangana seeking the resignation of Mr. Kumar. He warned that the agitation would be intensified if the Centre failed to respond to their demands.

Separately, leaders of INDIA bloc parties staged a protest outside the Hyderabad Collectorate demanding the removal and arrest of Mr. Kumar. They submitted a representation to the Joint Collector and said their agitation would continue until the CEC was removed and a thorough investigation ordered.

Meanwhile, Congress Khairatabad district president M. Rohit, Secunderabad district president Deepak Jain, MLC Kodandaram, CPI State leader Narasimha, CPI(M) city secretary Venkatesh, Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS) leaders Salim Pasha and Arun Kumar, Hyderabad district president Narsaiah and representatives of the VCK participated in the protest.