The Congress said on Monday it will launch a series of protests under the banner “Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao” to demand the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and the restoration of the names of eligible voters among the 130 million deleted from the electoral rolls.
In a change of stance, the party has also invited its two estranged allies — the DMK and the AAP — to join the INDIA bloc’s march to the Election Commission on Tuesday and attend the Ramlila Maidan rally on November 1. “Between October 10 and 20, there would be block-level protests in the form of bike rallies or padyatras. The party will organise month-long village-level meetings beginning October 25.
Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal announced the programmes, while communications in-charge Jairam Ramesh said, “We are inviting all Opposition parties to participate in the march and the Ramlila Maidan rally. Wary of the CJP’s growing popularity and its ability to attract young people, Gandhi told them, “You must protest in a way that catches people’s attention so that they can join you. The party held a preparatory meeting attended by all general secretaries, in-charges and state unit chiefs. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi led the discussions. This will take place all over India. “In these meetings, our party workers will identify genuine voters who have been deleted from the voters’ list. He emphasised that genuine voters must be restored to the electoral rolls. He asked the NSUI, which has been largely absent from the protests, to step up its efforts.
From October 10 to November 26, the Congress plans to hold marches, rallies and village meetings as part of a “continuous, aggressive campaign” against Kumar. Venugopal announced that the party would begin the “Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao” campaign on October 10. We will also burn effigies of Gyanesh Kumar and distribute pamphlets against his misdeeds,” Venugopal said. We are naming our workers ‘vote rakshaks’,” Venugopal said. At the meeting, Kharge said the Chief Election Commissioner must be removed because he knew he had been “caught by the people”. He cautioned that the BJP might try to distract public attention, but said the party must complete its task. Gandhi told party leaders that the issue concerned the people.
