‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’: Congress announces nationwide campaign against CEC Gyanesh Kumar | India News
NEW DELHI: Hours after the Supreme Court clarified that it had not approved any modified version of Form 6, Congress on Monday announced an intensified nationwide campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Party’s general secretary KC Venugopal threatened that the agitation over alleged “vote theft” would continue until Kumar is removed and the electoral system is corrected.Announcing the ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’ campaign, Venugopal said the Congress would take its protest from blocks and villages to the national capital, with marches, chaupals, rallies and a major mobilisation in Delhi planned between October 10 and November 26.“Congress President has given a clear direction today to the PCC Presidents, In-charges, and General Secretaries for an aggressive, nationwide campaign against vote theft – ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’. This is the slogan we are raising,” he said.The announcement came after a meeting of Congress general secretaries, in-charges, PCC presidents and frontal organisation heads chaired by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and attended by leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.Venugopal said the campaign would not be a short-term protest. “Rahul Gandhi has also given clear directions to our leaders that this agitation is not going to end tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. This will be a continuous, aggressive campaign till Gyanesh Kumar is removed and the system has to be corrected,” he said.The Supreme Court on Monday said it had not approved any modified Form 6, which is used for enrolling new voters during the SIR. Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said, “Any modified Form 6 has not been approved by us. Let’s be clear. When the record is produced, we would like to see who has modified.”Venugopal seized on the development to attack the Election Commission. “You know the Election Commission has become the ‘Cheating Commission of India’. After this much – after this much observation from the Supreme Court and the opposition parties, and two Commissioners’ remarks also, he is misleading the people,” he said.The first phase of the Congress campaign, from October 10 to 20, will feature block-level bike rallies, cycle rallies and padyatras. “All over India, it will happen. Thousands of workers in each block will participate in this march demanding this thing, and we will burn the effigies of Gyanesh Kumar,” Venugopal said.
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From October 25 to November 25, Congress workers, whom the party is calling “Vote Rakshaks”, will hold village chaupals and identify voters it alleges have been unfairly deleted from electoral rolls.The campaign will culminate with a mega rally at Ramlila Maidan on November 1 and six ‘Chalo Delhi’ yatras on November 25 and 26.Venugopal also announced a protest march from Parliament to the Election Commission on Tuesday, saying, “Our aim is to have a peaceful demonstration to show the protest against the Election Commission of India.”“Every person of India wants to remove the Chief Election Commissioner. Only two people want to retain him – Prime Minister and Amit Shah,” he said.
