Congress leader P. Chidambaram argued that India's Election Commission functions as an administrative entity, not a judicial one, and should not embody courtroom protocols when considering petitions or complaints.
In a social media post, he clarified, “The Election Commission is not a court and should not adopt a judicial stance over petitions or complaints. It is an administrative body tasked with conducting free and fair elections.”
Discussing Rule 20(3)(B) of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, Chidambaram noted it pertains merely to the acceptance or rejection of claims by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) for inclusion in the voter list and is inapplicable to alleged large-scale manipulations in the complete electoral roll of a constituency.
He also stressed that the Election Commission owes a duty not only to political parties but also to the country's electorate.
Why did Chidambaram make such remarks?
Chidambaram's social media comments surfaced following Karnataka's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) requesting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to submit documents supporting his allegation that a voter had cast multiple ballots during the previous year's Lok Sabha elections.
The CEO's letter referenced Rahul Gandhi’s recent press conference, during which he alleged that certain documents in his presentation were 'Election Commission data' and asserted that the voter named Shakun Rani voted twice based on polling officer records. The Election Commission's official noted Rahul Gandhi's statement, “This ID was used for voting twice, with ticks marked by the polling booth officer.”
Addressing Rahul Gandhi, the letter requested, “We urge you to provide pertinent documents that led to your conclusion that Shakun Rani or any other person voted twice, facilitating investigations.”
Read also: INDIA Block's power show against 'vote theft' today... Led by Rahul Gandhi, 300 MPs to march from Parliament to EC office
On Monday, MPs from the INDIA Block will march to the Election Commission of India's (ECI) headquarters in New Delhi in protest against the special intense revision (SIR) of voter lists and alleged electoral discrepancies.
The march will be led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has demanded the Election Commission to release digital voter lists to enable auditing by individuals and parties.
In a social media message, Rahul Gandhi stated, “Vote theft assaults the fundamental idea of 'one person, one vote.' A transparent voter list is essential for free and fair elections. Our demand to the Election Commission is clear—embrace transparency and release digital voter lists for individuals and parties to audit.
