Bhubaneswar, 25 September (H.S.): Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president and Leader of Opposition in the Odisha Assembly Naveen Patnaik on Friday demanded the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and called for a comprehensive review of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Speaking to mediapersons in Bhubaneswar, Patnaik said reported differences among members of the Election Commission raised concerns over the manner in which the SIR process was being conducted. He said the entire exercise should be thoroughly revisited and reiterated that the BJD had opposed the SIR process from the beginning.

Patnaik’s remarks came amid intensified Opposition criticism of the Election Commission following a report that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections on at least 14 occasions over a period of 10 months. The reported objections related to issues including voter registration, deletion and restoration of names, changes to electoral procedures and access to voter database systems.

The development has triggered a political controversy, with several Opposition parties questioning the functioning of the poll panel and demanding action against the CEC. The issue has also been linked to the ongoing debate over the SIR exercise and the management of electoral rolls.

However, Election Commission sources have rejected the suggestion of a lack of consensus within the poll panel, stating that decisions, including those related to the SIR, were taken with the approval of all three Election Commissioners.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda