New Delhi, Sept. 29 -- A protest by Left parties outside the Election Commission of India (ECI) office in New Delhi on Tuesday ended with several leaders and activists being detained by the Delhi Police as they demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar amid the ongoing row over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Among those detained were CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby and CPI(ML) Liberation leaders Sucheta De and Shweta Raj, besides activists associated with various Left organisations, including the All India Central Council of Trade Unions and the All India Lawyers' Association for Justice.
The protesters had gathered outside the poll panel's headquarters, raising concerns over the conduct of the SIR exercise and seeking Kumar's removal. Police detained the demonstrators and shifted them in vehicles, with reports at the time saying their destinations were not immediately disclosed.
The protest comes against the backdrop of reports about disagreements within the three-member poll panel over aspects of the electoral-roll revision process.
The Election Commission's official directory lists Kumar as CEC, with Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi serving as Election Commissioners.
A recent report cited by protesters said Sandhu and Joshi had raised objections on multiple occasions regarding issues linked to voter registration, deletion and restoration of names and aspects of the poll panel's functioning.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.