Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday (September 29, 2026) called for the immediate removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, and demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s resignation on moral grounds for “pressuring” the poll panel chief.

- PTI

Maharashtra Congress on Tuesday (September 29) demanded action against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, alleging that the statutory powers of electoral registration officers to decide voter eligibility were being diluted through the ECI-Net system.

Reacting to media reports that Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S Chockalingam had sought restoration of powers of the sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs), Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe claimed certain officials had misused the software to classify voters and engineer electoral roll anomalies.

“If there are anomalies or discrepancies, the statutory authority to decide who is a voter and who is not rests with the ERO, that is, the SDM,” Mr. Londhe said.\

- PTI

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday (September 29, 2026) called for an overhaul of a system that “blames the victim and shields the criminal”, urging the youth to protest against women’s harassment and rape, as the government only responds under pressure.

“Stop punishing women for the crimes committed against them. Across our country, women are afraid to walk the streets, afraid of being harassed, afraid of being raped. And the government’s answer: stay at home. This is patriarchy at work: a system that blames the victim and shields the criminal. It is time to smash it,” he said in a post on X.

- PTI

Congress leader and former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said on Tuesday (September 29) that massive protest demonstrations, such as the one recently organised in Chhattisgarh, would continue against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

“Definitely, it happened; a huge protest was held. And this will continue continuously,” he said.

Asked whether the demand for CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s arrest was even possible given the legal immunity and protection shield provided to the poll chief under recent amendments, Baghel said, “Everything is possible.”

- ANI

Top Congress leaders met here on Tuesday to discuss the party’s roadmap for upping the ante against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the government in the wake of “differences” within the Election Commission and alleged SIR irregularities.

The CWC meeting, chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, is being attended by former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, party general secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh, K.C. Venugopal, among others.

A day before the meeting, Kharge said the Election Commissioners have “exposed” the working within the poll body by raising concerns over Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and changes in Form 6 for enrolling new voters, besides additions and deletions from voter lists and centralised control over the electoral roll database.

- PTI

The Calcutta High Court on Friday dismissed a petition by the Congress’ West Bengal unit, alleging a discrepancy in the age and the school pass-out year mentioned in a poll affidavit by the BJP’s Nandigram bypoll candidate Hasirani Rath.

The state Congress had claimed that Rath’s affidavit mentioned her age as 60-plus, while she listed her Class 10 pass-out year as 1965, pointing out that this leaves an age gap. Justice Krishna Rao pronounced in court that the petition by the state Congress is dismissed. A detailed judgment is likely to be uploaded on the High Court website later in the day.

Following the conclusion of arguments on September 25, Justice Rao had reserved judgment in the Congress party’s petition. The Election Commission (ECI) had claimed that the West Bengal Congress has no locus standi as they have no right to complain about candidature scrutiny.

- PTI

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (September 29) agreed to hear next week a petition that raised doubts over the decisions taken by the Election Commission of India led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

The matter was mentioned before a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana.

Senior advocate Vikas Singh, who mentioned the matter, told the bench that as per the statutory scheme, decisions of the multi-member Election Commission have to be unanimous or by majority.

“The way the Election Commission is functioning, there is serious doubt over whether the decisions are unanimous,” he submitted.

PTI

Three days after the Delhi Police detained protesters attempting to reach Jantar Mantar, a delegation of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), led by its president Neha Bora, on Monday submitted an “intimation letter” at the Parliament Street police station about a proposed protest on October 2 demanding the resignation and arrest of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the electoral process. 

The allegations against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission of India are serious issues, and linked to the survival of democracy in the country, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said on Monday, while announcing a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on the issue.

The Congress on Monday stepped up its agitation against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, holding protest marches across Maharashtra and demanding his removal and arrest over alleged irregularities in electoral rolls and the conduct of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

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In an open letter, the retired IAS officer also urged Opposition parties to boycott elections until the CEC and the Election Commissioners resign