New Delhi, Nov. 1 -- Thousands of colourful flags, big and small, fluttered across the sprawling Ramlila Maidan as chants of "vote bachao, desh bachao (save elections, save India)" rended the air, with people from every corner of the country converging in the capital for INDIA bloc's rally against alleged "vote chori".
From farmers, labourers and domestic helps to students, transgender activists and political party workers, the gathering brought together people with concerns extending well beyond alleged electoral irregularities. Unemployment, inflation, women's safety, the Manipur crisis, access to education, and the rights of marginalised communities all found a place in the conversations unfolding at the venue.
For Karuna Kurrey, a member of Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress, the concerns over electoral democracy are inseparable from the everyday struggles of citizens, as those elected to power ultimately determine the policies governing their lives.
"If the names of crores of eligible voters have been deleted from electoral rolls, does that mean all these people are illegal immigrants? Are they not citizens of India whose right to vote must be protected?" she said.
She said concerns regarding unemployment, crimes against women and children, and the justice system also demand political accountability.
The difficulties faced by people trying to establish their eligibility to vote echoed among those from economically vulnerable backgrounds.
Guddi Tirki, a domestic help originally from Jharkhand's Gumla, who lives in a slum cluster in southeast Delhi's Jasola, said a booth-level officer (BLO) had visited her residence and asked her to furnish proof linking her to her native village. Some discrepancies in her documents had complicated the process. "We have not come from another country," she said, questioning why people like her have to struggle to establish their eligibility.
She said the process is particularly difficult for people from disadvantaged backgrounds who often lack the education and language skills to navigate official procedures.
For Hasmat, 68, a supporter of the Jai Kisan Andolan from Uttar Pradesh's Amethi, the journey to Delhi was worth the expense. She said she had paid for the train journey out of her own pocket just to raise farmers' concerns at the protest.
The demand for accountability was loud and clear in the slogans raised by student organisations.
Members of the Uttar Pradesh unit of National Students' Union of India (NSUI), who had travelled from Shahjahanpur, had just one message -- "Vote Chor, Gaddi Chhod (Vote chor, vacate your seat)" they shouted in unison, demanding resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.
Rajesh Chaudhary, a Congress leader from Haryana, invoked the fundamental democratic principle that the Constitution belongs to the people and derives its authority from them. She said the prevailing situation has raised questions about whether citizens are being adequately represented and if those in power are answerable at all.
Unemployment, inflation, crimes against women and children and shortcomings in education, she said, demand accountability from the government. A democracy cannot function meaningfully if citizens are denied voting rights and the opposition is ignored.
Bobo, who travelled from Kakching district in Manipur, said the call to scrap the SIR exercise is inseparable from the larger fight to hold the government accountable.
The rally also provided a platform for members of marginalised communities to raise concerns over their political representation.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.