Gyanesh Must Quit As CEC, Demands BRS

HYDERABAD: The BRS has joined the chorus of political parties demanding the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar declaring that one man could never be greater than the rights of 1.4 billion Indians, and that no one had the right to strip Indians of their voting rights.

Party working president K.T. Rama Rao, and BRS Assembly deputy floor leader T. Harish Rao led the BRS’ demand for Gyanesh Kumar’s ouster. In a statement, Rama Rao said: “Gyanesh Kumar must go. Nothing is greater than the Constitution of India. And no Indian citizen can be stripped of the right to vote.”

“This nation has seen many individuals come and go. So why this desperation to protect one man,” Rama Rao said, hinting at efforts by the BJP to protect the Chief Election Commissioner and his job.

The time was up for Gyanesh Kumar and for anyone trying to build a quasi-system that destroyed the soul of this great nation, he said. The BRS reiterated its demand that Supreme Court takes suo motu cognisance of the irregularities in SIR process and order an independent investigation headed by a judge, Rama Rao said.

Harish Rao said that the Election Commission of India “is the backbone of Indian democracy, not a shield for those in power. Articles 324, 325 & 326 of the Constitution, along with the Representation of the People Acts of 1950 & 1951, demand a credible, impartial and inclusive electoral system.”

Castigating the removal of voters from electoral roles in the guise of the SIR, Harish Rao said “no eligible voter can be arbitrarily denied their right to vote. Gyanesh Kumar must take responsibility. If the Election Commission cannot command public confidence, the CEC must resign. Democracy is bigger than any individual or government.”