Hyderabad : Escalating the Congress party’s attack on the Election Commission over the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Wednesday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi ensure the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and scrap the exercise, warning that failure to do so would invite a larger political battle against the BJP-led govt.
Because this is not the issue of the Congress but of the people of the country,” Revanth claimed, people are watching PM Modi and BJP’s game plan and will oust them from power.
Speaking to reporters outside the Barakhamba Road police station in New Delhi, where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was taken after being detained during a protest at Jantar Mantar, Revanth said the agitation against the CEC and the Centre would continue until Gyanesh Kumar stepped down or the SIR exercise was withdrawn. The chief minister said the Congress and the INDIA bloc would intensify their campaign under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, taking the fight “from sadak to Sansad”. Revanth said the demand for the CEC’s resignation was not merely a Congress issue but one concerning the voting rights of citizens. Reiterating the party’s stand, he urged Modi and Shah to ensure Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation and said the Congress and INDIA bloc would continue their campaign to “save the Constitution” and protect voters’ rights.
“The detention of Rahul Gandhi and other AICC leaders has only exposed the intolerance of PM Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah . Instead of arresting those who have committed a mistake, the police, on the directions of Shah, took away Rahul Gandhi and other AICC leaders in their van on the lines of terrorists being forcibly arrested,” alleged Revanth. Revanth, accompanied by revenue minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, visited the police station to express solidarity with Gandhi and other opposition leaders. The Constitution has guaranteed the voting right to its citizens, and no one has the right to snatch it. Drawing a parallel with the protests against the Simon Commission during the freedom movement, the chief minister warned that protecting the CEC would carry political consequences for the Modi govt.