Massive protest by Pradesh Congress demanding removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar : APCC President Gaurav Gogoi, AICC Secretary Manoj Chauhan, and numerous leaders-workers detained
By Dalim Phukan
Guwahati, Sep 26 : The Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) on Friday staged a massive protest from Rajiv Bhawan in Guwahati, demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar—who faces serious allegations of “vote theft”—along with an impartial review of decisions taken and alterations made to electoral rolls during his tenure. As the protest rally commenced from Rajiv Bhawan toward the office of the State Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Assam Police halted the procession and forcibly detained several top leaders, including APCC President and Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi.
Congress leaders and workers gathered at the protest site electrified the atmosphere with high-pitched slogans. Slogans such as “Vote chor, gaddi chhod” (Vote thief, vacate the seat), “Gyanesh Kumar Murdabad”, “Gyanesh Kumar resign”, “Election Commission of India Murdabad”, “Gyanesh Kumar chor hai, chor hai”, “BJP Go Back”, “Modi Sarkar Hoshiyar”, “Amit Shah Murdabad”, “BJP hatao, Desh bachao”, and “Attacks on democracy will not be tolerated” reverberated through the streets.
Tense scuffles broke out between protesters and security personnel as police set up barricades to obstruct the rally. While staging a peaceful, democratic protest, the police under the Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma-led government resorted to high-handedness, dragging APCC President Gaurav Gogoi into a vehicle and detaining him. Along with Gogoi, the police forcibly arrested several key leaders and workers, including All India Congress Committee (AICC) Secretary Manoj Chauhan, APCC General Secretaries Santanu Borah and Udit Bhanu Das, Seva Dal President Dwip Bayan, women leaders Bidisha Neog, Moushumi Neog, Tazika Parbin, and Mainajan Begum, as well as Golam Mustak Osmani, Ankur Raj Gogoi, Diganta Laskar, Jon Rajkhowa, and Anwar Hussain. The Congress strongly condemned these repressive actions by the Assam government and police, characterizing them as sheer cowardice and reminiscent of Hitler-like rule. Notably, more than a hundred leaders and party workers participated in today’s protest, including Assam Assembly’s Leader of the Opposition Wazed Ali Choudhury, senior Congress leaders Debabrata Saikia, Ripun Bora, Abdul Khaleque, Nilamani Sen Deka, Pranatee Phukan, Diganta Barman, Nandita Das, Pradyut Bhuyan, Kamrup District Congress President Pranjit Choudhury, and spokesperson Gopal Sharma.
Expressing deep outrage before the press, MP Gaurav Gogoi stated that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had committed treasonous acts. He alleged that Gyanesh Kumar was not operating in isolation; the BJP, RSS, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah were all complicit in this conspiracy. Gogoi raised serious allegations that the Election Commission is functioning akin to the BJP’s IT cell, systematically deleting the names of lakhs of voters across the nation through automated systems. He further asserted that to disenfranchise the upcoming generation of ‘Gen Z’ voters, arbitrary and complex stipulations have been introduced in electoral ‘Form 6’, resulting in online portals failing to open under the pretext of parental verification, thereby robbing the youth of their franchise.
Asserting that Congress will not back down despite police force, Gaurav Gogoi warned that if the BJP believes it can suppress democracy through police batons, bullets, or abuse of state machinery, they are sorely mistaken. He emphasized that the people of India had fought against the British empire, and they would never surrender to such injustice and oppression. Gogoi reiterated that the Congress party’s struggle will continue unabated until Gyanesh Kumar is removed, the Election Commission is cleansed and made transparent, and the country’s Constitution, democracy, and citizens’ voting rights are fully safeguarded.
