Forward Bloc demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation, flags voters' rights concerns

The All India Forward Bloc has demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, citing concerns over electoral transparency and the rights of voters.

The demand was raised at a meeting of the party's district committee held on Sunday (October 25), alongside the 83rd anniversary of the Azad Hind Government. T. Manoj Kumar, the party's State general secretary, called for transparent and impartial elections and urged the authorities to ensure that no eligible voter is unfairly removed from the electoral rolls.

District secretary P.A. Anas presided over the meeting, and industrialist N.A. Mohammed Kutty delivered the keynote address. Among those who spoke were Kallara Mohandas, Syed Abid Thangal, P.A. Rahman Valanchery, Rahmathullah Kuppanath, Ashraf Pattarkulam, Girish Kumar, Saji and C.K. Gafoor.

The Forward Bloc was founded by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in 1939, and the Azad Hind Government he led was proclaimed in October 1943. The party has long drawn on that legacy, and its district units have traditionally marked the anniversary with political meetings. The choice of occasion gave this year's meeting a distinctly electoral focus.

At the heart of the party's demand is the conduct of the Election Commission of India, which is entrusted under Article 324 of the Constitution with the superintendence, direction and control of elections to Parliament, State legislatures and the offices of President and Vice-President. The Commission's responsibilities include preparing and periodically revising electoral rolls, and any deletion of a name from the rolls is, under the law, subject to notice and an opportunity for the voter to be heard.

Opposition parties have on earlier occasions raised concerns about the revision of electoral rolls, and the Commission has consistently maintained that such exercises are carried out in accordance with its established procedures and with adequate opportunity for claims and objections. The Forward Bloc's demand is therefore part of a wider and continuing public debate about how the electoral machinery is run, rather than an isolated intervention.

It is important to note that the party's statements, as reported from the meeting, did not set out specific instances of eligible voters having been removed from the rolls, nor did they cite documents or data in support of the allegation. The demand for the Chief Election Commissioner's resignation is a political position taken by the party; it has not been established in any judicial or statutory proceeding.

The Chief Election Commissioner is appointed under a 2023 law that provides for a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, a Union Cabinet Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. The office is constitutionally protected, and a Commissioner can be removed only in the manner provided for the removal of a Supreme Court judge, on grounds of proved misbehaviour or incapacity.

There was no immediate public comment from the Election Commission on the Forward Bloc's demand. The party has said it will continue to press for what it describes as a free, fair and transparent electoral process, and the issue is likely to remain part of the political conversation in the weeks ahead.