Shimla, September 24: Himachal Pradesh Congress President Vinay Kumar has expressed serious concern over the functioning of the Election Commission and alleged arbitrary conduct by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, stating that the impartiality of the poll panel has now come under question.
Reacting to media reports, Vinay Kumar questioned the decisions taken by the Chief Election Commissioner despite reported differences with the other two members of the three-member Election Commission. He alleged that the Chief Election Commissioner was acting at the behest of the BJP and had compromised the independence of the institution.
He further alleged that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise had deprived nearly 13 crore voters of their voting rights. He referred to objections reportedly raised by two Election Commissioners regarding voter lists, registration of new voters, changes in Form 6, centralisation of voter data, appeals in West Bengal and exclusion of eligible voters in Goa.
Vinay Kumar also raised concerns over the alleged lack of meetings of the Election Commission for several months and said that questions raised over the SIR exercise had not been adequately addressed.
He said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had repeatedly raised concerns over the functioning of the Chief Election Commissioner. Vinay Kumar alleged that the latest media reports had further highlighted these concerns and asserted that Gyanesh Kumar no longer had the moral right to continue in the post.
