Priyanka Gandhi demands removal of legal safeguards for EC, resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar

Malappuram: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday demanded removal of the legal safeguards provided to the Election Commissioner, alleging that such protections were instituted by the BJP government to shield the poll panel from accountability.

She also demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, saying the INDIA bloc was united in seeking his removal.

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"I strongly believe that the legal safeguards that are provided to the Election Commissioner, which were instituted by the BJP government to protect him no matter what he does, those safeguards need to be removed," the Wayanad MP told reporters here.

"If anyone is committing illegal acts against the nation, against our Constitution, against India, they need to be tried for the criminal action they are involved in. This is treason and they need to be tried for it," she said.

Vadra alleged that the BJP government was protecting the Election Commissioner.

If an EC is committing such serious crimes against democracy, it is practically impossible to do it without the support of the leadership, she said.

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"Our immediate demand is that Gyanesh Kumar should resign. The INDIA bloc is united in this demand. Every single leader in the alliance is in full agreement that what is going on is absolutely illegal and unconstitutional," she said.

She was responding to questions about reports of differences within the three-member Election Commission over various decisions and instructions relating to electoral-roll revision, deletion and addition of names, changes to forms for new voters and access to voter data.