BENGALURU: Demanding the immediate dismissal and arrest of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over what he termed a “treasonous act,” Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president B K Hariprasad on Saturday addressed a demonstration at Freedom Park stating that Rahul Gandhi had called for this struggle against constitutional authorities misusing their power.
“We are fighting to protect the Constitution. This is our duty,” Hariprasad said. Alleging large-scale deletion of voters, the leader claimed that after the BJP government came to power in 2024, the BJP won elections in six states.
He alleged that in Bihar 6.4 million votes were forfeited, in West Bengal 9.1 million votes were forfeited, and in West Bengal names of 3.8 million voters were flagged and blocked. Their right to vote has been completely stripped away, he alleged.
“No one has the right to strip the rights of citizens born in this country. Eligible voters have been deleted in all states, including Haryana and Maharashtra. In our state, 10.7 million voters have been removed from the voter list, classified as 7 million duplicate voters and 3.8 million others,” he claimed.
ಕೆಪಿಸಿಸಿ ವತಿಯಿಂದ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿನ ಫ್ರೀಡಂ ಪಾರ್ಕ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಶನಿವಾರ ನಡೆದ ಪ್ರತಿಭಟನೆ ವೇಳೆ ಕೆಪಿಸಿಸಿ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರಾದ @HariprasadBK2 ಅವರು ಮುಖ್ಯ ಚುನಾವಣಾಧಿಕಾರಿ ಜ್ಞಾನೇಶ್ ಕುಮಾರ್ ಅವರ ಪ್ರತಿಕೃತಿ ದಹನ ಮಾಡಿದರು. pic.twitter.com/EyxT1XAJXS
— Karnataka Congress (@INCKarnataka) September 26, 2026
He said Rahul Gandhi has been making serious allegations about vote theft since 2024 and had raised his voice against alleged vote theft in Mahadevapura, Aland and Maharashtra from Freedom Park itself. He had explained how election commissioners are aiding the BJP through irregularities. Initially, no one paid attention, but later Election Commission officials demanded that Rahul Gandhi apologise, the leader said.
“The solid foundation of democracy is the voter list. Citizens of this country have the right to vote. Every five years, the Constitution gives us the power to choose the government we want. BJP is trying to uproot this,” he said.
Referring to the addition of new voters, he said it was Rajiv Gandhi who reduced the voting age from 21 to 18 years and Gen Z voters’ names should be added to the voter list. These young people are standing against the Modi government and there is a conspiracy underway to remove their votes, he alleged.
“They are stripping the rights of the youth generation born and educated in this country. After winning elections, they say there is Modi’s storm and Amit Shah’s Chanakya tactics. There is no storm here, nor are there any Chanakya tactics. Rigging votes through the Election Commission is not Chanakya tactics,” he said.
He said the judiciary must play a role in curbing the Election Commission’s alleged conspiracies and malpractices; otherwise, they will uproot the country’s democracy and Constitution, and therefore eligible voters should not be deleted.
He alleged that there are three commissioners in the Election Commission and decisions should be taken by majority, but in the last 10 months, on 14 occasions, two commissioners expressed dissent and Gyanesh Kumar unilaterally made decisions and brought amendments to Form 6.
“The work of stripping genuine voters is being done by Modi and Shah. Gyanesh Kumar does not acknowledge the dissent of the other commissioners. Along with Gyanesh Kumar, the other two secret commissioners are Amit Shah and Narendra Modi. Following their words, names of 130 million voters have been deleted from the voter list in the country,” he alleged.
He said for the country to remain independent, there must be stable democracy and for that the Election Commission was established. For 75 years, election officials did not commit any irregularities, but after the BJP came to power in 2014, they are conducting election irregularities through the Commission, he alleged.
“As Congress party workers, we must fight to preserve the freedom and democratic system bequeathed to us by our ancestors. In 2023, they brought amendments to the law and seated a central minister in the selection of Election Commission commissioners, excluding the Chief Justice. Because of this, we will not get justice. Our struggle will continue until Gyanesh Kumar resigns, and from Monday, this fight must continue at the district level,” he added. (ANI)
