Election Commission Faces Opposition Heat Over Voter List Revision

In a significant development, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and fellow commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi held discussions with a Janata Dal (Secular) delegation at Nirvachan Sadan on Thursday. Representing the JDU(S) was National General Secretary KR Shivakumar, as part of ongoing interactions between the Election Commission of India (ECI) and various political party leaders.

According to an ECI statement, these engagements aim to facilitate constructive dialogues, allowing party leaders to directly present their concerns and suggestions to the Commission. This initiative is part of the ECI's efforts to enhance the electoral process in line with the existing legal framework, involving all stakeholders.

Over the past 150 days, ECI reported organizing 4,719 meetings with political parties, engaging over 28,000 representatives. In contrast, Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hasan criticized the lack of government response to opposition concerns regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), describing it as an assault on the Constitution. Meanwhile, the INDIA bloc has amplified accusations of 'vote theft' against the Commission, following repeated protests since the start of the monsoon parliamentary session, which adjourned sine die on Thursday.

(With inputs from agencies.)