Chennithala claimed the Election Commission’s credibility has collapsed, citing reports that fellow commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi lodged 14 objections regarding electoral rolls and database access over a ten-month period. The ECI has countered these claims, characterizing the internal disagreements as routine administrative feedback rather than institutional dissent, and asserting that all final decisions regarding the Systematic Integrity of Rolls (SIR) process were unanimous.
The controversy has sparked nationwide demonstrations by Congress units, while BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan pointed to a stark contradiction in the party's stance. Kesavan highlighted that Chennithala previously praised the SIR process following the 2026 Keralam elections, crediting it for the removal of bogus votes. Chennithala defended this inconsistency by arguing that the Keralam outcome remained favorable only due to the extreme vigilance of local political parties.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray has joined the chorus against the commission, alleging that the poll body manipulated voter lists to favor rivals. Thackeray cited the loss of his party's symbol and name as evidence of the commission's bias, ultimately calling for a return to paper ballots in Maharashtra, West Bengal, and Karnataka. These allegations follow a landslide victory for the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance, which secured 235 seats in the Maharashtra Assembly, cementing its dominance in the state.
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first!