Srinagar, September 25 (TGE): Congress legislators staged a brief protest in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on Friday, demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and raising slogans in support of electoral democracy.
As soon as the House proceedings began, Congress lawmakers Nizamuddin Bhat, Irfan Hafiz Lone and Iftikhar Ahmad stood up and raised slogans against the CEC while displaying banners carrying messages such as “Protect the Vote, Protect Democracy” and “No Democracy Without Fair Elections”.
Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather questioned the legislators over bringing banners inside the House and asked them to close them.
The Speaker also told the protesting members that the Election Commission of India (ECI) was not under the jurisdiction of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly.
“This is Question Hour,” the Speaker said, asking the Congress lawmakers to take their seats and warning them of action if they continued the protest.
The protesting legislators demanded the resignation and removal of Gyanesh Kumar, while Congress MLA Irfan Hafiz Lone described the issue as an attack on democracy.
Nizamuddin Bhat also urged the Speaker to allow the Congress members to present their concerns.
However, the Speaker disallowed the protest and directed the members to resume their seats.
The protest comes amid a wider political controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and reported differences within the Election Commission over certain decisions related to the process.
Congress and other opposition parties have raised concerns over electoral roll revisions and demanded an independent review of decisions taken under the CEC.
The Election Commission, meanwhile, has maintained that differences of opinion are a normal part of institutional deliberations and that its decisions follow established legal procedures.
Following the brief protest, the Congress legislators took their seats, and the proceedings of the Question Hour continued.