Senior AICC Leader Dr. Ajay Upadhyay Addresses Press Conference in Tezpur on ‘Save Vote, Save Democracy’ Campaign.
▪️ “Manipulating and Taking Away Citizens’ Voting Rights Amounts to Indirectly Imposing Hitler-like Rule in the Country”: Dr. Ajay Upadhyay
▪️ Demands Resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Insists That Elections in 2029 Must Be Held Using Ballot Papers.
Dalim Phukan.
Hills Live News, Guwahati, October 26: The BJP-led Central Government and the Election Commission are allegedly conspiring to undermine democracy by depriving citizens of their voting rights. A press conference was held in historic Tezpur on Sunday to discuss the nationwide ‘Save Vote, Save Democracy’ campaign launched under the leadership of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
At the outset, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) Media Department Chairman Bedabrat Bora said that people from all sections of society, along with various political parties and organisations, were now raising their voices against what he described as an authoritarian Election Commission and government.
Referring to Assam, Bora alleged that, alongside 18 other states, a conspiracy was being hatched to remove the names of young voters from electoral rolls through the Special Summary Revision (SSR) process. He claimed that the move was aimed particularly at first-time voters who had attained the age of 18, as they had allegedly understood the corruption and false promises of the BJP government and were unlikely to vote for the party.
To counter this alleged move, Bora said that, under the direction of APCC president Gaurav Gogoi, the Congress had decided to appoint a party representative, designated as a ‘Vote Guardian’, at every polling booth in the state to safeguard the voting rights of ordinary citizens.
Addressing the press conference thereafter, senior All India Congress Committee (AICC) leader Dr. Ajay Upadhyay launched a sharp attack on the Central Government and the Election Commission.
He said that the right to vote was the strongest foundation of democracy and that manipulating the electoral process to deprive citizens of this right amounted to indirectly imposing an authoritarian regime like that of Hitler.
Expressing concern, he alleged that despite two Election Commissioners raising strong objections on 14 important issues over the past ten months, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had failed to provide any response.
Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Chief Election Commissioner of acting in collusion to facilitate irregularities, he said, “Vote theft in the country is now an established fact. That is why more than 50,000 paramilitary personnel have been deployed in Delhi to suppress protests by the Opposition and concerned citizens, turning the city into a prison.”
He further alleged that the Chief Election Commissioner had been granted legal immunity beyond that enjoyed by even Supreme Court judges, paving the way for the alleged undermining of democracy without accountability.
At the press conference, the AICC leader reiterated three clear demands of the Congress. First, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar must resign immediately. Second, the SIR process, through which the names of approximately 133 million voters have allegedly been deleted across the country through improper procedures, must be halted. Third, all future elections must be conducted using ballot papers instead of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Issuing a strong warning, he said, “If citizens’ votes are not protected, the Constitution and democracy of the country can never be protected.”
Recalling Tezpur’s historic contribution to the Quit India Movement of 1942, Dr. Upadhyay announced that a massive rally would be held at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on November 1, with a target of attracting more than one million people.
He also said that the movement would be taken to the grassroots through the organisation of ‘Chaupals’ in villages across the country.
Several Congress leaders attended the press conference, including APCC General Secretary Arun Tiwari, Sonitpur District Congress president Kartik Kurmi, Sonitpur District Mahila Congress president Sampurna Saikia and senior Congress leader Jayanta Khaund.