Story perspectives

Opposition Demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar Resign Over Voter Roll Revision

By Drooid · Sep 27, 2026, 4:04 AM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Opposition parties demanded CEC Gyanesh Kumar resign over the Special Intensive Revision voter-roll process in late September 2026.
Leaders called the CEC anti-national, accusing him of partisanship and attempting to recruit BJP candidates.
Congress workers broke barricades and were detained or water-cannoned in Delhi, Patna, Jammu, Kolkata, Punjab, Assam and Arunachal.
BJD president Naveen Patnaik said over 25 lakh Odisha voters were deleted and demanded the CEC resign.

History

Historical Context

The Election Commission of India, empowered by Article 324, has long revised rolls—annual summaries until 1966, then intensive revisions before each election. In 1995 Chief Election Commissioner T.N. Seshan deleted about 2.5 million names, with 1.2 million in Delhi and Mumbai, a move the Supreme Court upheld. Today, opposition protests against CEC Gyanesh Kumar echo that 1995 purge, underscoring recurring roll-clean-up tensions.

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Story summary

Opposition parties demanded CEC Gyanesh Kumar resign over the Special Intensive Revision voter-roll process in late September 2026.
Leaders called the CEC anti-national, accusing him of partisanship and attempting to recruit BJP candidates.
Congress workers broke barricades and were detained or water-cannoned in Delhi, Patna, Jammu, Kolkata, Punjab, Assam and Arunachal.
BJD president Naveen Patnaik said over 25 lakh Odisha voters were deleted and demanded the CEC resign.

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