Bengaluru, September 24, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara on Thursday demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and called for an independent probe into the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI), citing reported objections raised by two Election Commissioners over decisions concerning electoral rolls and related systems.
In a statement, Parameshwara referred to reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally recorded objections at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and communications they said were issued without their knowledge or approval. The reported objections concerned voter registration, deletion and restoration of names, the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), changes to Form 6 and access to the electoral-roll database.
“Has a three-member constitutional body been reduced to the will of one individual — Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar?” Parameshwara asked.
He said the reported objections went beyond routine administrative matters and raised questions about the management of electoral rolls and the systems used for voter registration and revision.
Parameshwara specifically referred to reported objections over changes to Form 6, the statutory application used for registration of new voters. Reports said the two Election Commissioners questioned the change on the grounds that it required amendments to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, with one objection reportedly describing it as “unauthorised and illegal”.
He also alleged that control over the electoral-roll database was being centralised and that statutory officials at the state level were being bypassed. He linked these concerns to earlier allegations raised by Congress leaders, including Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, regarding electoral rolls and voter data.
Referring to the SIR exercise in Karnataka, Parameshwara cited figures of around 1.08 crore voters flagged under Absent, Shifted, Duplicate, Dead and Others (ASDDO) categories in draft electoral rolls, including around 46.88 lakh in Bengaluru. He also referred to about 43.8 lakh voters who reportedly faced notices over “logical discrepancies” or lack of mapping.
“The Chief Election Commissioner is first among equals, not above the Commission,” Parameshwara said, arguing that decisions affecting the electoral process should follow collective decision-making.
He alleged that if decisions were taken by bypassing the other two Election Commissioners, the matter warranted independent scrutiny and could affect public confidence in the poll panel.
“I strongly condemn the manner in which CEC Gyanesh Kumar has functioned in the face of these serious revelations,” he said, demanding Kumar’s removal and an independent and impartial investigation.
The Election Commission, however, has rejected suggestions of an internal rift. It said written objections, observations and technical suggestions by individual Election Commissioners were part of normal institutional deliberations and maintained that all decisions taken by the Commission, including those concerning SIR, had been unanimous.
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