CEC must turn approver: Rahul Gandhi says has received Gyanesh Kumar's messages

Asked if he received messages from CEC Gyanesh Kumar, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi responded in the affirmative. The Lok Sabha LoP alleged that Gyanesh Kumar had committed a crime and that he should turn approver.

In Short

• Congress leader Rahul Gandhi claims he gets messages from CEC Gyanesh Kumar
• The Lok Sabha LoP has accused the ECI of vote theft and demanded CEC's removal
• Rahul Gandhi also says that around 200 govt officials are in the Opposition's touch

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that there was no way but for Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar to "turn approver" because "he had committed a crime". The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha was addressing the media ahead of the march to the Supreme Court, seeking action against the CEC. Asked if he received messages from the CEC, Rahul responded in the affirmative.

"Messages come. Messages come, and he is watching this press conference," said Rahul Gandhi when asked by a journalist if Gyanesh Kumar tried to contact or send message to him.

Rahul added that his response to Gyanesh Kumar was, "Turn approver. You have done a crime and, frankly, you are not the main, main criminal. You made a mistake. You have made a mistake. You are not the mind behind the mistake," Rahul Gandhi said.

Rahul did not elaborate on the nature or content of the messages he claimed to have received from Gyanesh Kumar.

The remarks came ahead of the INDIA bloc's planned march to the Supreme Court on Monday to file a petition over allegations against the Election Commission. Opposition leaders are also gathering at Connaught Place at 1.30 pm as part of their protest against the poll body.

Rahul Gandhi has accused the Election Commission of undermining India's democratic process and demanded Kumar's removal. The Congress leader said the Opposition's resistance would continue until the Chief Election Commissioner was removed, the electoral system revamped and justice delivered.

During the press conference, Rahul also claimed that around 200 government officials were in touch with the Opposition and sharing information, including officials in the Enforcement Directorate, Central Bureau of Investigation and Ministry of External Affairs. He alleged that the government was attempting to protect those responsible for wrongdoing and said the Opposition would not back down from its campaign.

GOVT PROTECTING GYANESH KUMAR, SAYS RAHUL

Rahul Gandhi alleged that the government was protecting CEC Gyanesh Kumar and claimed that the Opposition had information about the Chief Election Commissioner's conduct.

Rahul alleged that Kumar had acted under pressure from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and industrialist Gautam Adani. "We know that you have been forced by the Prime Minister, by Amit Shah, by Mr Doval, by Mr Adani. We know it," he said, adding that the Opposition understood the pressure Kumar was under.

He said the Opposition's campaign would continue until the Election Commissioner was removed, the electoral system revamped and justice delivered. "We are not going to stop," Rahul said, reiterating his demand for action against those he accused of undermining India's democratic process.

Rahul Gandhi also said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and he had written to the Chief Justice of India expressing concern over election fairness, and that the CJI had responded by asking them to file a petition.

Rahul said the protests were part of a wider resistance, adding, "There are no parallel protests. They are one protest," and calling on people across political affiliations to join the movement to defend the Constitution.

He added that the Opposition would support anyone fighting to protect the Constitution, regardless of their political affiliation. "If you are protecting the Constitution as we are, we are with you. We will support you. We will help you. We will protect you and we expect the same from you," he said.

The Congress leader said the campaign was aimed at removing Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and would subsequently target Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. "There's one protest. The protest is to remove Gyanesh Kumar and then after that, remove Mr Prime Minister, Mr Amit Shah. Remove these people. We're not going to stop," Rahul said, reiterating that the Opposition would continue its agitation.

- Ends