HYDERABAD: Accusing the BJP-led NDA government of suppressing democratic rights by restricting protests in Delhi, Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Saturday demanded that the Centre stop preventing citizens from peacefully raising concerns over the protection of voting rights.
In a statement, Prabhakar said the right to peaceful protest was guaranteed to every Indian citizen and that the government could not silence public dissent by imposing restrictions, disrupting transport services or resorting to arrests.
He criticised the disruption of Metro and railway services, internet restrictions, the deployment of thousands of police personnel and the prevention of protesters from reaching their destination. Such measures, Prabhakar said, amounted to an attempt to curb democratic expression rather than address the concerns being raised.
Prabhakar called on the Narendra Modi government to take concerns over voters’ rights seriously and initiate appropriate action. Referring to the demand for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, he said safeguards must be put in place to ensure that no eligible citizen was denied the right to vote during the electoral roll revision process.
Instead of obstructing demonstrations, the Centre should engage with protesters, hear their demands and respond to the issues they had raised, he said.
“Such restrictions are contrary to the spirit of democracy,” Prabhakar said.
He said allegations of vote theft and criticism of the electoral roll revision process had become matters of nationwide debate, and demanded a clear response from the Centre. The government must address the Opposition’s allegations and take transparent measures to restore public confidence in the electoral system, he said.
Recalling India’s freedom struggle, Prabhakar said the country had won its Independence through people’s movements and that the struggle to protect the Constitution, democratic values and voting rights continued. The Union government had a responsibility to respect citizens’ concerns and address their demands, not suppress dissent, he said.
The minister demanded that the Centre immediately withdraw restrictions on protesters in Delhi, allow citizens to hold peaceful demonstrations and take concrete steps to ensure that no eligible voter was deprived of their voting rights.