Democracy can’t be held hostage to opposition’s comfort, SIR necessary for fair polls: Delhi CM

The credibility of India’s democracy cannot be held hostage to the political convenience of opposition parties, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said on Monday, referring to ongoing protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar

Referring to an open letter by 124 former IAS, IFS and allied service officers defending the Election Commission’s institutional integrity, Gupta backed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), saying free and fair polls demand accurate voter rolls, transparent procedures and strong institutions.

Opposition parties, including the Congress, have been demanding CECE Kumar’s resignation, accusing him of enabling mass vote deletions and other irregularities in the SIR of electoral rolls.

It comes as SIR is underway in Delhi, with over 47 lakh names removed from the draft electoral rolls of 70 Assembly constituencies in the city.

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“Congress and its allies cannot question the Election Commission every time the verdict goes against them and invoke democracy only when it suits their politics,” the Delhi chief minister said.

“Respect for democracy cannot be selective. Neither can respect for its institutions,” she asserted.

The CM’s remarks come amid INDIA bloc members, including Rahul Gandhi, marching to the Supreme Court to press for Kumar’s removal.

Earlier, former civil servants and diplomats had defended the EC and the SIR process, saying a system cannot be honest when someone wins and rigged when that person loses.

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They pointed out that under the same EC, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre lost assembly polls in Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir, and in 2024, lost its majority in the Lok Sabha.

“The winners raised no complaint. A system cannot be honest when you win and rigged when you lose,” they said.

The officers who wrote the letter include former secretaries to the government of India, former ambassadors, former directors general of police, former chief secretaries of states and former directors general of income tax.