President Murmu To Meet INDIA Bloc Delegation At 8 PM Over ECI Row

President Droupadi Murmu will meet a delegation of the Opposition INDIA bloc at 8 pm on Friday after Rashtrapati Bhavan accepted its request for an appointment over the Election Commission of India (ECI) row, sources said. The Opposition plans to raise concerns over Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The meeting comes as the INDIA bloc enters the fourth consecutive day of protests demanding Kumar’s resignation over alleged electoral irregularities. Opposition parties have accused the Election Commission of facilitating “vote chori”, or vote theft, allegations the poll body has rejected.

INDIA Bloc MPs To Meet At Samvidhan Sadan

Before the meeting with the President, INDIA bloc MPs are scheduled to gather at the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan at 3 pm on Friday to discuss their next course of action. The alliance had been considering further protests, with Seva Teerth, Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Vice-President’s residence and the residences of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah among the possible locations mentioned by sources.

Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal said on Thursday that the bloc had first written to the President on October 2. Rashtrapati Bhavan subsequently sought the names of the leaders who would attend the meeting, following which the Opposition submitted another request on October 5, seeking an appointment on October 7, 8 or 9.

The bloc had been awaiting a response when Venugopal spoke on Thursday. The confirmation of the 8 pm meeting comes amid the Opposition’s efforts to take its concerns directly to the President.

Opposition Steps Up Protest Over SIR

On Thursday, INDIA bloc leaders staged a sit-in at Rajghat, Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial in New Delhi, after police stopped earlier attempts to march to the Election Commission’s headquarters. Opposition leaders accused the government and the CEC of undermining democratic institutions through alleged electoral manipulation and vowed to continue their agitation until Kumar resigns.

The protests follow a report by The Indian Express that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally raised objections at least 14 times over the preceding 10 months, mostly concerning decisions and orders related to the SIR exercise.

Responding to questions about the reported objections, the Election Commission said differences of opinion were a normal part of institutional deliberations. It maintained that its orders had legal sanction and followed established statutory procedures.

The INDIA bloc’s campaign has included demonstrations and “Save Democracy” marches over concerns about voter-list revisions. The meeting with President Murmu will give the Opposition an opportunity to present its objections to the electoral process and the functioning of the poll panel.