Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday described the “public impeachment” of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar as an “extremely dangerous political weapon” targeting those who “colluded” to destroy the votes of the Indian people, and said the CEC should be tried for treason in a court of law.
Warning Kumar and those in the Modi government allegedly behind “vote chori”, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said, “We guarantee you that we are not going to forgive and forget the assault on the voice of the people of India.”
Backing an INDIA bloc resolution seeking the symbolic “public impeachment” of Kumar, Gandhi said it was absurd that opposition MPs and leaders had to gather in the garden of Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's residence because all other institutions were closed to them.
“I fully support the motion to impeach Gyanesh Kumar, who should be tried for treason in a court of law and justice should be served,” Gandhi said in his concluding remarks at the event.
Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, general secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh and KC Venugopal, among others, were present at the event, held on the eve of an opposition rally in the national capital. Leaders from at least 18 parties and Independent Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal also spoke at the event, chaired by former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.
After about three hours of speeches by opposition leaders, the resolution seeking the CEC's removal was passed unanimously by a show of hands.
'We have no other option'
Before the resolution was passed, Rahul Gandhi said it was “quite absurd” that 250 opposition MPs, civil society members and mediapersons had gathered at Kharge's residence. He said the opposition had been forced to hold the “impeachment proceedings” in a garden because it had no other option. “The reason we are standing here is that we have nowhere else to go. We have no other option. Every single institution is closed for us,” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
“I don't think anything like this has ever happened: the entire opposition sitting in a garden to discuss the impeachment of the chief election commissioner of India,” he said.
Rahul also claimed that Kumar would not remain in office as CEC.
“We have enough evidence to ensure that this gentleman does not continue in office. If the BJP insists on retaining him even after we reveal what we know, then its game will be clear for everyone to see,” the former Congress chief said.
“This may look like a meeting of MPs and ordinary citizens, but it is, in fact, an extremely dangerous political weapon that is sitting here in the garden of the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha. This weapon is targeted directly at every single person, starting with Mr Gyanesh Kumar, and going to Mr (Narendra) Modi, Mr (Amit) Shah, who colluded to destroy the votes of the Indian people,” Gandhi said.
He said those gathered had a message for the Gyanesh Kumars of the world: "you are hiding behind the institution you have sworn to protect".
"Remember, you cannot hide behind it forever. One day, today or tomorrow, you will have to face the representatives of the people of this country," he added.
“Whoever these people are should realise that this is not just some talk taking place in a garden; this is a political weapon that is going to give justice to the people of India.
“This is our sacred duty to the Constitution and to the people of India. We are left with no choice but to do this,” he said.
'Will not forgive and forget what you have done'
Gandhi also claimed that 13.3 crore voters had been deleted through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, amounting to one in every seven Indians or 15 per cent of the electorate.
“These voters participated in the last Lok Sabha elections, where the victory margin was 3 per cent. Now, the Election Commission itself is stating that 15 per cent of the voters should never have voted.
“So, the Election Commission itself is saying that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were illegal and the BJP, which entered the Lok Sabha, did so illegally,” he said.
“You cannot delete 13.3 crore voters and then argue that the 2024 elections were legal,” he said.
Attacking Kumar, Gandhi accused the CEC of attacking the soul of the country and said he would not be allowed to escape accountability.
“If Gyanesh Kumar or five-seven people think that immunity will save them or that Modi-Shah will save them, I would kindly suggest that they see what is going on in the country and understand the mood of the people.
“Tomorrow you will see how a political weapon is placed on the streets of Delhi. A united opposition will show you the mood of the people of this country,” he said.
Targeting the Modi government, he said it could continue to rig elections and allow the misuse of institutions, but “we guarantee that this is a temporary phenomenon”.
“We guarantee you that the voice of the people, the opposition MPs, and the youngsters who are on the streets will not forgive and forget what you have done, because this is an assault on India,” he said.
Warning those who had “assaulted the Union of India”, Gandhi said Gyanesh Kumar was only one element and that there were many others.
“This is a warning to you – things are shifting. This is a new political weapon sitting in the garden, and it is going to hurt you very badly if you continue going down your path. I say with affection, we are not nasty people, but we will protect the voice of the people,” Gandhi said.
(With inputs from PTI)
