I.N.D.I.A. Bloc To Meet On SIR And Poll Body Row; DMK Skips Following Cong-TVK Tie-Up

The Opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc parties are all set to meet in New Delhi on Wednesday to discuss concerns over the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll, besides other issues. Sources said the DMK had supported the cause but would not be attending the meeting. The chasm came after the Congress and TVK joined hands in Tamil Nadu.

The meeting was necessitated by Trinamul Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee after she spoke to several leaders. After landing in Delhi, Banerjee said: "We have come here for the I.N.D.I.A. bloc meeting... Our target is the Chief Election Commissioner and his entire software team, who cheated the public...We have been calling him 'Vanish Kumar' (CEC Gyanesh Kumar)..."

The Trinamul Congress is contemplating releasing audio recordings of its meetings with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar amid the ongoing row over the SIR exercise, party sources said on Tuesday. They said the recordings were expected to be released next week to highlight the manner in which CEC Kumar interacted with political parties during meetings with the poll panel, including discussions on the technicalities and procedures relating to the election process.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav may not be attending the meeting. Speaking about this. Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal said: "I spoke to Akhilesh Yadav the day before yesterday. Yesterday, all the Congress leaders also spoke to him. He has a Rajya Sabha nomination filing tomorrow (Wednesday) and therefore cannot attend in person…. Leaders from his party are attending”

Opposition parties were working on a fresh removal notice against CEC Kumar, which was likely to be submitted in both Houses of Parliament after being vetted by legal experts. It would be the third such attempt by the Opposition to unseat the CEC.