The Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission, claiming that recent internal differences within the constitutional body exposed a deeper threat to India’s democratic process. Akhilesh also demanded that no future elections should be held under the current chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Concerns Raised Over Electoral Integrity
The national president of the SP has called for an immediate halt to future elections under the current Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), citing serious concerns about the integrity of the electoral process. He stated, ‘No future elections should be held under him (the CEC). It is a very serious development. What could be more serious than objections being raised against almost every decision?’ He emphasized that this situation undermines the independence of election officials, stating, ‘This simply means that members of an independent body no longer have the freedom to act justly or be heard.’ He warned that such circumstances pose a grave threat to democracy, labeling it a ‘grave constitutional crime’ when officials are perceived as being manipulated by those in power.
Furthermore, he described the ongoing developments as ‘nothing less than a conspiracy to destroy democracy.’
Yadav promised that a future SP government will fully compensate families who lost homes and shops in recent demolition actions. “No action was taken against any official. “Democracy is under severe strain. This is going to be the last election in Uttar Pradesh. The SP chief also spoke about the alleged high-handedness in demolition drives in Ayodhya and the state’s law-and-order situation.
He said that in several instances, more than 100 votes were cancelled based on a single person’s signature – far beyond the permitted limit – and that signatures of individuals who could not even write their names were allegedly forged to delete names of Muslim and Samajwadi Party voters.
This shows the Commission is not impartial,” Yadav said. After this, your voting rights will be taken away,” he said. On the question of whether opposition parties would plan a protest if no action is taken against the CEC, he said, “The people of the country will give a befitting reply to the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] in the upcoming elections and their reverse countdown will start.
