The Opposition has sharpened its attack on the Election Commission, demanding the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner, a halt to the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and action by the Supreme Court, after differences within the poll body came out in the open.

The trigger was the reported objections raised by two Election Commissioners to decisions related to the SIR exercise, a rare public display of disagreement at the top of the constitutional body.

A rare open split

Opposition leaders said that when the Commission’s own members flag concerns about decisions linked to the revision of voter rolls, the credibility of the entire exercise is called into question. They argued that the SIR, which affects the franchise of crores of voters, cannot proceed amid such a divide.

The demand to pause the revision has been accompanied by calls for the Supreme Court to take note of the situation and examine the decisions that have drawn internal objections.

Why the CEC is under fire

Targeting CEC Gyanesh Kumar directly, Opposition parties alleged that the decisions under dispute were pushed through without addressing the concerns raised by his colleagues. They described the situation as dangerous for democracy and said the CEC had lost the moral authority to continue in office.

The Commission, for its part, has maintained that the SIR is a routine and necessary exercise to ensure clean and accurate electoral rolls, and that the process is being conducted strictly as per the law.

What comes next

The controversy has added a new dimension to the ongoing political debate over electoral reforms, coming on top of the legal challenge to the 2023 appointment law. With Assembly elections in several states on the horizon, the Opposition is expected to keep the pressure up.

Whether the Commission addresses the internal objections publicly or the courts step in will determine how this confrontation plays out in the weeks ahead.