Nagaland Congress demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, citing reported EC objections and concerns over SIR and voter deletions
Kohima, Sept. 25 (EMN): — The Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) on Friday demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, citing concerns over the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) functioning and the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Addressing a press conference at Congress Bhavan in Kohima, NPCC Working President C Apok Jamir alleged that decisions were being taken without adequate consultation with the other two Election Commissioners.
He referred to a recent Indian Express investigation which reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period on matters concerning the functioning of the poll panel, including electoral-roll management and SIR-related issues.
Apok maintained that the CEC was “first among equals” and could not take decisions arbitrarily without consultation with the other commissioners. On this basis, he said the Congress was seeking Kumar’s resignation on moral grounds.
The Election Commission, however, has maintained that internal observations and differing views are part of its decision-making process and that decisions taken by the poll panel over the past year, including SIR-related decisions, were unanimous.
Apok said the Congress was particularly concerned about the implications of SIR, arguing that voter deletions could affect citizens’ democratic rights if the exercise was not carried out fairly.
On Nagaland’s SIR, he said the party would support the exercise if it was conducted transparently and in accordance with its stated purpose. However, he expressed concern over the deletion of more than one lakh names from the state’s electoral rolls and said any unfair deletion could have political consequences.
He also questioned the requirement in Form 6 relating to the names of parents, saying the Congress was concerned about how the information could be used and sought greater transparency in the process.
Delayed road works
Lok Sabha MP and NPCC president S Supongmeren Jamir also raised concerns over delays in major road projects in Nagaland, including the four-lane Dimapur-Kohima highway and the road to Kisama.
He said a delegation had met authorities on September 24 to discuss the continuing problems along the highway. According to Jamir, the initial survey had encountered difficulties related to soil and geotechnical studies.
He informed that a revised approach involving a tunnel after the Patkai Bridge and two additional bridges was being worked out, with the Detailed Project Report in the process of being finalised.
Jamir said some visible improvement could be expected before the Hornbill Festival, including completion of two structures, while a permanent solution to the Patkai section could take another one to one-and-a-half years.
On the Kisama road, he said work had commenced from both the Mao and Kohima sides on Friday following discussions involving the administration, village authorities, builders, contractors and landowners.
He said two contractors would be engaged and expressed hope that the road would be cleared for vehicular movement within about a month, with further work continuing thereafter.
Jamir added that the Kohima bypass remained substantially incomplete and could take another two years to complete.
Naga political issue
On the Naga political issue, Jamir said the Congress stood for implementation of the Framework Agreement and Agreed Position with the inclusion of all stakeholders.
He said the negotiations had already concluded and that the focus should now be on implementation. Referring to former Nagaland Governor RN Ravi’s earlier statement that the negotiations had concluded, Jamir questioned the need for a new interlocutor at this stage.
On former Chief Minister SC Jamir’s reported meeting with the RSS chief, Supongmeren said it was held in his personal capacity and not on behalf of the Congress party.
Asked about SC Jamir’s recent remarks concerning the functioning of the state government and the possibility of President’s Rule, Apok said the veteran leader had a point in the context of the commitment previously made by MLAs to resign if a Naga political settlement was reached.