Thousands demonstrated in Delhi on 1 November demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Rahul Gandhi and leaders of the opposition INDIA alliance led a march towards Ramlila Maidan under heightened security.
The confrontation centres on a sweeping revision of voter rolls. Opposition parties allege that eligible citizens are being excluded to benefit the governing Bharatiya Janata Party. The Election Commission denies favouring a party and says wrongly removed voters can register again. Allegations of manipulation are not established judicial findings.
The rally follows demonstrations continuing since late September. Reports of internal objections concerning voter lists, registration procedures and digital systems have intensified the dispute. Protesters demand accountability, while the governing party accuses its opponents of undermining confidence in the electoral process.
Additional police deployments and traffic restrictions affected central parts of the capital. Separately, the BJP organised a march in west Delhi commemorating victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh violence. The two events have different organisers and purposes.
The resignation demand raises the political pressure but does not itself remove the election chief. The central practical question is whether wrongly excluded voters can restore their registration in time, and whether the process is applied equally. The dispute is therefore about access to the ballot as well as confidence in the institution that administers it.
