New Delhi, Oct 31 Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said the “public impeachment” of Gyanesh Kumar is an “extremely dangerous political weapon” targeted at those who “colluded” to destroy the votes of the Indian people, and asserted that the chief election commissioner should be tried in court for treason.
In a warning to Kumar and those in the Modi government behind “vote chori”, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said, “We guarantee you that we are not going to forgive and forget the assault on the voice of the people of India.”
Supporting an INDIA bloc resolution for the symbolic “public impeachment” of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kumar, Gandhi said it is absurd that the opposition MPs and leaders had to gather in the garden of the (Rajya Sabha) leader of opposition’s residence as all other institutions were closed for them.
“I fully support the motion to impeach Gyanesh Kumar, who should be tried for treason in a court of law and justice should be served,” Gandhi said while delivering the concluding remarks at the event.
Besides Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and general secretaries Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Jairam Ramesh and K C Venugopal, among others, were present at the “public impeachment” held on the eve of an opposition rally here.
Leaders of at least 18 parties and Independent Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal spoke at the event chaired by former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar.
After about three hours of speeches by the opposition leaders, the resolution to “remove” the CEC was passed unanimously with the raising of hands.
In his remarks before the resolution was passed, Rahul Gandhi said it was “quite absurd” that 250 opposition MPs, civil society members and mediapersons were sitting at Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence.
He said the reason the opposition was forced to hold the “impeachment proceedings” in a garden was that it was left with no other option.
“The reason we are standing here is that we have nowhere else to go. We have no other option. Every single institution is closed for us,” the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
“I don’t think anything like this has ever happened: the entire opposition sitting in a garden to discuss the impeachment of the chief election commissioner of India,” he said.
The Congress leader also claimed that Kumar will not survive as the CEC.
“We have enough evidence to ensure that this gentleman does not continue in office. If the BJP insists on retaining him even after we reveal what we know, then its game will be clear for everyone to see,” the former Congress chief said.
“This may look like a meeting of MPs and ordinary citizens, but it is, in fact, an extremely dangerous political weapon that is sitting here in the garden of the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha.
“This weapon is targeted directly at every single person, starting with Mr Gyanesh Kumar, and going to Mr (Narendra) Modi, Mr (Amit) Shah, who colluded to destroy the votes of the Indian people,” Rahul Gandhi said.
He also said the people gathered have a message for the Gyanesh Kumars of this world that “you are hiding behind the institution you have sworn to protect”.
“Remember, you cannot hide behind it forever. One day, today or tomorrow, you will have to face the representatives of the people of this country,” he added.
“Whoever these people are should realise that this is not just some talk taking place in a garden; this is a political weapon that is going to give justice to the people of India.
“This is our sacred duty to the Constitution and to the people of India. We are left with no choice but to do this,” he said.
The Congress leader also said that 13.3 crore voters were deleted through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which means one in every seven Indians or 15 per cent of India’s electorate.
“These voters participated in the last Lok Sabha elections, where the victory margin was 3 per cent. Now, the Election Commission itself is stating that 15 per cent of the voters should never have voted.
“So, the Election Commission itself is saying that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections were illegal and the BJP, which entered the Lok Sabha, did so illegally,” he said.
“You cannot delete 13.3 crore voters and then argue that the 2024 elections were legal,” he said.
Slamming Kumar, Rahul Gandhi said the CEC has attacked the soul of this country, and he will not be allowed to escape.
“If Gyanesh Kumar or five-seven people think that immunity will save them or that Modi-Shah will save them, I would kindly suggest that they see what is going on in the country and understand the mood of the people.
“Tomorrow you will see how a political weapon is placed on the streets of Delhi. A united opposition will show you the mood of the people of this country,” he said.
Attacking the Modi government, he said it can continue to rig elections and allow the misuse of every institution in this country, but “we guarantee that this is a temporary phenomenon”.
“We guarantee you that the voice of the people, the opposition MPs, and the youngsters who are on the streets will not forgive and forget what you have done, because this is an assault on India,” he said.
Warning those who “assaulted the Union of India”, Gandhi said Gyanesh Kumar is one element, and there are many others.
“This is a warning to you – things are shifting. This is a new political weapon sitting in the garden, and it is going to hurt you very badly if you continue going down your path. I say with affection, we are not nasty people, but we will protect the voice of the people,” Gandhi said.
(PTI News)
