Opposition alliance India is set to hold an urgent meeting in Delhi on 30 September to plot its next moves against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, amid mounting allegations that he has colluded in manipulating India’s voter rolls. The gathering follows a telephone conversation between Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, according to sources close to the discussions, says Anandabazar.
Sources said Banerjee urged Gandhi to convene the alliance swiftly given the current controversy, and that she also spoke separately with CPM general secretary MA Baby about coordinating a response. Congress, Trinamool and other opposition parties have accused Kumar of cheating voters, following a report in the Indian Express that alleged internal dissent within the Election Commission over changes made to electoral rolls.
According to sources, Wednesday’s meeting is expected to address both the row over Kumar and the Election Commission’s Special Intensified Revision of voter lists, a process opposition parties have long criticised as prone to manipulation in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s favour. The India bloc has raised concerns about the exercise before; last year Gandhi accused the BJP and the commission of rigging votes during a dinner attended by alliance leaders.
The renewed push marks an attempt by opposition parties to present a united front on what CPM state secretary Mohammad Selim described as a fight against a bigger challenge, rather than a matter of electoral seat-sharing arrangements between parties. Selim said the country’s constitutional institutions were under threat, adding that letters on the issue had been sent to several parties, including Trinamool, and that many had expressed interest in joining the campaign, though he said Banerjee still needed to clarify her position.
Trinamool Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghosh confirmed that Banerjee and the party’s all-India general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee, would attend the 30 September meeting. She said discussions would extend beyond the Election Commission row to cover wider central government policies that Trinamool regards as detrimental to the country.
The talks will be the first face-to-face gathering of India bloc leaders since a meeting at Delhi’s Constitution Club in June, which Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek attended shortly after West Bengal’s assembly elections. Both are expected to be present again next week, alongside representatives of Congress, the CPM and other constituent parties of the alliance.
The controversy over Kumar’s leadership of the Election Commission has become a rallying point for opposition parties, several of which have long accused the ostensibly independent body of favouring the BJP in the conduct of state elections. The commission has denied any wrongdoing, saying differences of opinion among its officers were normal within any institution and that all its actions were lawful. The BJP has similarly dismissed the allegations as a smear campaign.
The India bloc, formed in 2023 to unite opposition parties against Modi’s government, has faced periodic strains over seat-sharing and strategic differences between its constituents, including Congress and Trinamool. Selim’s remarks suggested the current dispute over the Election Commission could serve as a unifying issue, even as questions remain over the extent of Trinamool’s participation in any coordinated campaign.
The Delhi meeting comes at a politically sensitive juncture, with several major states, including Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, due to hold elections next year, seen as key indicators of public sentiment ahead of national parliamentary polls scheduled for 2029. Any perception of irregularities in the electoral process is likely to feature prominently in the run-up to those contests.
