New Delhi, Apr 30 (PTI) Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has alleged that the Election Commission has never been “more compromised” than it is under CEC Gyanesh Kumar, who, he claimed, acted as a player in the just-concluded state assembly polls.
Ramesh asserted on Thursday that the Opposition would continue its efforts to get Kumar removed from the post of CEC (Chief Election Commissioner).
The Congress leader alleged that the right to vote was under threat in the country and it was time to make it a fundamental right for citizens instead of a constitutional right. The remark came against the backdrop of the SIR (Special Intensive Revision) of electoral rolls whereby lakhs of names were struck off the rolls in several states.
Opposition parties recently moved a second notice in the Rajya Sabha for a motion to remove the CEC from the post, after the first such notice was rejected by the chair in both houses.
Speaking to reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Kumar, alleging that he had not acted as a neutral observer in elections and had become a “player” instead.
“The Election Commission has never been as compromised as it has been under Gyanesh Kumar,” he said, alleging that the “rot” started during the term of Kumar’s predecessor.
Ramesh said his party was fighting elections against political opponents and the Election Commission too.
“Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections,” he alleged.
“The rot started under his predecessor. This man is not a neutral observer,” the Congress leader said.
He said there were nine charges against Kumar in the Opposition’s notice given in the Rajya Sabha. The Congress leader said efforts for Kumar’s removal would continue as he was “compromised”.
Asked what the Opposition would do in case its notice for the CEC’s removal was rejected again by the chair, Ramesh said, “We will keep going against him till he is removed. We will continue our efforts to get him removed.” “Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds — detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported,” Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote was under threat.
Ramesh batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
“I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory and constitutional right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable,” he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
“Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens,” Ramesh asserted.
Genuine Indian citizens were being deprived of the right to vote, he said and cited the case of Nand Lal Bose, saying even a man who contributed so much to the Constitution was not spared as his wife and son’s names were not included. Ramesh said even eminent citizens such as Amartya Sen and others were not on the (voter) list.
There was no controversy on the issue that Indian citizens should have the right to vote, he said.
Ramesh also said he had no faith in exit polls and dubbed them a “racket”, claiming that a majority of them had lost their credibility. He cited the example of the 2021 exit poll results for West Bengal to highlight how everyone got the results wrong.
On the high voting percentage in West Bengal, the Congress leader said West Bengal and Tamil Nadu had always been high polling states and in the current election cycle the voting was marginally higher.
Ramesh took a dig at Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his Ladakh visit, saying he had gone for a vacation after making the “Election Commission dance to his tunes during the assembly elections”.
Shah is on a two-day tour to Ladakh. Ramesh said it was for the first time after 2019 that the home minister was on a tour to Ladakh. PTI ASK SKC SKC SAP SAP
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