New Delhi: All India Congress Committee General Secretary Jairam Ramesh unleashed a severe verbal critique against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Tuesday, condemning the Election Commission of India (ECI) for exhibiting "shamelessness" following the publication of an official communication regarding voter registration issued by the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer.

Taking to the social media platform X, Ramesh published a copy of the administrative document, contending that the commission's latest measures mirror past electoral malpractices allegedly witnessed during the state assembly polls.

"After having delivered the assembly election to the BJP in a brazenly fraudulent manner, the CEC has had this Press Note issued," Ramesh wrote. "There is no limit to Gyanesh Kumar’s shamelessness."

The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer for West Bengal circulated a statement on October 12 indicating that, “As per the instructions of the Election Commission of India, 24 District Election Officers (DEOs) of the state of West Bengal have started a proactive campaign to ensure that no eligible elector is left out of the electoral rolls.” The circular further noted that “special camps are being held throughout the state” and advised that “if any person has any complaint, please feel free to contact the concerned BLO, AERO, ERO, or DEO.”

The opposition figure's remarks highlight an escalating antagonism between the wider INDIA alliance and the national election watchdog, with political stakeholders repeatedly voicing concerns regarding institutional impartiality and administrative transparency surrounding democratic ballots.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Registry on Tuesday identified 14 technical flaws within the formal writ petition submitted by Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, and nine additional INDIA bloc parliamentarians contesting provisions of the ECI's ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter registers.

Of note, the Registry requested formal elucidation from the legal team concerning why individual officials, namely CEC Gyanesh Kumar alongside Election Commissioners S.S. Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, were named directly as private respondents within a constitutional petition instituted under Article 32 of the Fundamental Law.

The petitioners stated they approached the apex court to challenge purported procedural infractions committed in the application of statutory powers during the SIR campaign, seeking judicial scrutiny into how the election authority formulated and executed decisions regarding voter roll modifications, amongst alternative reliefs.

In its official notification issued on October 12, the Registry directed the petitioners to rectify the respondents' titles within the listing proforma, amend respondent particulars on page 9, and ensure consistent respondent numbering across the petition's prayer sections.

The legal challenge, lodged on October 12 under Article 32, asserts amongst other grievances that questions surround the collective decision-making framework of the ECI regarding the SIR, alterations implemented on Form 6, the technical operations of the ECINET and ERONET systems, and the criteria utilised for identifying electors for deletion or reinstatement.

ANI

The submission followed a written communication issued by the Chief Justice of India on October 11, which advised that cognate matters were slated for formal court deliberations on October 13 and stipulated that the petitioners could file their pleadings either physically or via the e-filing portal on October 12.

ANI