'Without facts or official statement': BJP's Anurag Thakur dismisses Opposition's criticism of CEC

Kangra: BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Saturday defended Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar amid the ongoing controversy over the functioning of the Election Commission, alleging that the Opposition was making accusations and searching for excuses after electoral defeats.

The remarks came amid a political row over the SIR exercise of electoral rolls following an Indian Express report saying that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders related to the SIR process.

Also read: Congress accuses CEC of law violation over Form 6 changes, urges SC to hold him accountable


Speaking to reporters at Kangra Airport, Thakur said the decisions taken by the Election Commission were "unanimous and by majority" and accused Congress and other Opposition parties of targeting the poll body whenever they lost elections.

He said that a newspaper had published a report without facts or statements from any concerned official and that the Opposition was using the report to stage protests and create confusion.

"Without any facts or an official statement, and despite not demanding anyone's explanation, a newspaper still published a story. And if the Opposition, after seeing that news, wants to protest, create a ruckus, and spread confusion, then I will just say that they want to cover up their defeat," Thakur said.

"Instead of introspecting, Congress and Opposition parties are only looking for someone to blame for their defeat," he added.

Thakur said that during the period when Congress governments ruled states for long periods, the Opposition did not raise questions about anti-incumbency or the Election Commission. He alleged that questions were now being raised about EVMs, the Election Commission and the Chief Election Commissioner whenever the BJP won elections.

"They do not do any self-reflection; they only look for excuses... Congress ruled the states for a long time. Back then, they didn't see any anti-incumbency. Back then, they didn't see any flaws in the Election Commission. But today, if BJP governments are forming again and again due to PM Modi ji's popularity and the hard work of BJP workers, they look for some excuse to make allegations; in this, sometimes EVMs, sometimes the Election Commission, sometimes SIR, and now the Chief Election Commissioner. It has become a habit to make false allegations. I will just say this: whatever decisions the Election Commission made, they made them unanimously and by a majority," he said.

Also read: "Resign and face action": Oppn escalates attack on CEC over EC dissent report; BJP calls it "false allegations"

Meanwhile, on the Delhi High Court's direction to Meta to remove within 24 hours objectionable content involving a morphed image of a woman with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Thakur expressed concern over the misuse of social media platforms.

He said that there had been several instances in which AI or other technologies were allegedly used to manipulate photographs and damage the image of celebrities, politicians and sportspersons.

"Now, tampering with the picture of the Prime Minister, who is one of the most popular leaders in the world, is unfortunate," he said.

Thakur called for stronger directions to social media platforms to prevent their misuse for damaging the reputation of individuals.