Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy has joined three other NDA allies in seeking greater clarity from the Election Commission over reported differences within the poll panel regarding the ongoing revision of electoral rolls. Kumaraswamy said the Election Commission’s responsibility is significant for the nation and questioned what was happening within the poll body, amid reports of differences between the three Election Commissioners.
“The responsibility of the Election Commission is important. What is going on inside the EC? There is a difference between what we are watching and what is actually happening. The real facts should come out from the members,” Kumaraswamy said.
He stressed that the Election Commission is an autonomous body and said its members should explain the situation to the public.
“There are three Election Commissioners. What is the problem? What is the fault? They have to explain it,” he said.
3 NDA allies seek EC clarification on objections raised over SIR within poll panel
His remarks come a day after three other NDA constituents, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM), sought clarification from the Election Commission over concerns surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
LJP (Ram Vilas) chief and Union Minister Chirag Paswan, who heads the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), said he was neither speaking for the poll panel nor endorsing the Opposition’s allegations. But the questions now before the public required a clearer response from the Commission, he said.
“If people start losing trust in the electoral system, that will not augur well for democracy and, therefore, I think the Election Commission must come out with its clarification more forcefully. It need not respond to what Rahul Gandhi and his associates are saying. But it must dispel misgivings in the minds of the people,” Paswan said.
Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha also called for an immediate clarification, while Telugu Desam Party’s (TDP) Lok Sabha floor leader Lavu Srikrishna Devarayalu said transparency would help strengthen confidence in the constitutional institution.
Tagging the Election Commission Kushwaha, in an X post, wrote, “The controversy regarding the SIR has created a situation of significant confusion among the public. The matter needs to be addressed. The Election Commission should immediately issue a clarification regarding the actual situation to clear up this confusion.”
“From the perspective of Andhra Pradesh, having closely observed the SIR exercise, I can say that the process was conducted in a transparent manner. Adequate opportunities and sufficient time were provided to every voter to participate and raise concerns,” Lavu Srikrishna Devarayalu said.
The Election Commission on Wednesday asserted that differing views among its members were a normal part of deliberation and that its final decisions, including those relating to the SIR, had been unanimous.