Communists of India protest Election Commission again

The mobilisation, held on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary at Jantar Mantar, brought together the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Communist Party of India, CPI(ML)-Liberation, Left student and youth organisations, Congress-affiliated groups, the Aam Aadmi Party and civil-society activists.

The protesters demanded the removal of Gyanesh Kumar, an immediate halt to the SIR process and the restoration of names of eligible voters who have been improperly excluded from the electoral rolls. The Left parties are also demanding changes to the 2023 law governing the appointment of election commissioners, arguing that the Election Commission must function independently and impartially.

Heavy police restrictions

Police presence was heavily increased throughout central Delhi, with multiple layers of barricades and large deployments of Delhi Police and paramilitary forces.

Police also restricted access to the protest area. Several Delhi Metro stations in central Delhi were temporarily closed, while internet services were suspended around the protest site. 

Despite these restrictions, large numbers of protesters attempted to reach Jantar Mantar. According to India Today, around 700 SFI (Students' Federation of India) activists were stopped at the Ashoka Road roundabout while attempting to proceed towards the protest site. SFI general secretary Aishe Ghosh was among those leading the mobilisation.

The CPI(M) said hundreds of young people and students associated with the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), Students' Federation of India (SFI) and other student and youth organisations reached Jantar Mantar despite the barricades. The party said that police manhandled protesters and forcibly placed them in buses, with some protesters were injured. 

CPI(M) leadership detained

The police action also affected the senior leadership of the CPI(M).

M. A. Baby, General Secretary of the CPI(M), and veteran party leader Brinda Karat were detained while participating in the protest. Other detained CPI(M)-linked leaders included Himaghnaraj Bhattacharya, General Secretary of DYFI; A. A. Rahim, DYFI president and MP; SFI General Secretary Srijan Bhattacharya; SFI president Adarsh M. Saji; and SFI Joint Secretary Aishe Ghosh. 

Brinda Karat, speaking during the protest, demanded Gyanesh Kumar's resignation and linked the dispute to what she described as the defence of voting rights and democratic institutions. She also criticised the police action on Gandhi Jayanti.

Following the action, the CPI(M) Polit Bureau called for the immediate removal of the CEC, a halt to the SIR and the release of all detained protesters. It said that the movement over the independence of the Election Commission and democratic rights would continue.

CPI leaders and cadres detained

The Communist Party of India (CPI) also took part in the mobilisation. Among those detained was P. Sandosh Kumar, CPI National Secretary and MP. Dinesh Varshney, CPI Delhi State Secretary, and Dinesh Seerangara, General Secretary of the All India Students' Federation (AISF), were also detained. Reports said that hundreds of CPI, AISF and All India Youth Federation (AIYF) cadres were detained during the police operation.

The CPI said that the police action was an attempt to suppress a protest over the defence of voting rights and democracy. In its statements on social media, the party argued that the detentions would not end the campaign against the CEC and the SIR.

The protest followed a joint initiative by the CPI, CPI(M) and CPI(ML)-Liberation, which had called for a week of nationwide demonstrations from 26 September to 2 October. The campaign culminated in the Delhi mobilisation on Gandhi Jayanti.

Wider participation by the Left

The mobilisation extended beyond the three principal Left parties. AISA, CPI(ML)-Liberation's student organisation, was prominent among the protesters, while SFI and DYFI mobilised large contingents. Other Left organisations, including representatives of the Revolutionary Socialist Party, Forward Bloc and Communist Ghadar Party of India, had also participated in earlier demonstrations connected with the campaign.

The broader opposition was also represented. AAP leaders Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Sanjeev Jha, RJD MP Manoj Jha, Congress youth activists and members of NSUI took part in different parts of the mobilisation. Social activists including Yogendra Yadav and Nikhil Dey were also detained.

More than 700—and possibly over 1,000—detained

There are differing figures for the number of people detained. During the day, reports initially put the number at more than 700. Later reports citing Delhi Police put the figure at approximately 1,100 people detained across Delhi, including people intercepted before reaching Jantar Mantar. Many were subsequently released, including leaders of CPI(M) and CPI. 

The scale of the operation reflected the authorities' attempt to prevent a large gathering at Jantar Mantar. Police stopped groups approaching the area at several locations, while protesters attempted to cross barricades and reach the designated protest site.

Background to the protest

The immediate issue is the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and allegations by opposition parties that the process has resulted in the deletion of large numbers of eligible voters. The Left parties have argued that the SIR must be halted and that voters who were wrongly removed must be restored to the rolls.

The parties have also challenged the functioning and independence of the Election Commission under CEC Gyanesh Kumar. Their joint position calls for Kumar's removal and for a change to the system introduced by the 2023 law governing the appointment of election commissioners.

The Election Commission, however, has rejected the suggestion that differences or objections within the Commission demonstrate a breakdown of its functioning. It has said that major decisions concerning electoral-roll revisions and the SIR were ultimately taken unanimously by the full Commission. The allegations of partisan conduct by the Commission are therefore claims made by opposition parties, rather than established facts.

Continuing mobilisation

The 2 October action was not presented by the Left parties as an isolated demonstration. The CPI(M) said the struggle over the Election Commission, the SIR and democratic rights would continue, while AISA activist Neha Bora, who said she had been detained three times, announced that the protest movement would return to Jantar Mantar. She also said that a further mobilisation was planned for Saturday, 3 October.

The Delhi mobilisation therefore marked the culmination of a week-long campaign by the Left parties against the Election Commission, while simultaneously becoming a broader opposition protest involving student organisations, youth groups, AAP, Congress-linked organisations and civil-society activists. 

Protests in other parts of India

• Kolkata: The Left parties organised a major march on 2 October, beginning at the Netaji statue and proceeding towards the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Esplanade. The protesters demanded the removal of CEC Gyanesh Kumar, an immediate halt to SIR and restoration of names allegedly deleted from electoral rolls. CPI(M) West Bengal secretary Mohammed Salim said the action was intended to defend the independent and democratic functioning of the Election Commission. 
• Bihar, West Bengal and Jharkhand: Left organisations had already begun demonstrations on 26 September, focusing on alleged exclusion of voters through SIR and protection of the constitutional right to vote. CPI(ML)-Liberation reported these as part of the joint Left campaign. 
• Mumbai: A separate large mobilisation took place at Shivaji Park, centred on the demand for CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation and opposition to SIR. This demonstration was led primarily by the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party and included civil-society and public figures, rather than being principally a Left-party event. 
• Chennai: Protests were also reported on 2 October, again focusing on the SIR exercise and demands for greater accountability from the Election Commission. 

(Photo: outlookofindia.com)