Thiruvananthapuram Mayor attacks Congress over protests against Election Commission, questions party’s stand on SIR

Thiruvananthapuram Mayor V.V. Rajesh on Tuesday accused the Congress of attempting to undermine public confidence in India’s electoral system through its ongoing campaign against the Election Commission of India (ECI). He also questioned the party’s position on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The BJP leader, who addressed a press conference here, alleged that the Congress, under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, was conducting a misinformation campaign within and outside the country, and seeking to create doubts about the democratic process. He said political parties could legitimately criticise the Election Commission, but should not, in his view, cast aspersions on the entire electoral system.

Mr. Rajesh also sought clarification from Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan and Ramesh Chennithala on senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal’s reported call for scrutinising every major decision taken by the ECI during the last decade. He asked whether such a position would imply questioning the legitimacy of governments formed through elections held during the period, including the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government in Keralam.

The Mayor also highlighted the allegedly differing positions within the Congress on SIR. He referred to the remarks made by Mr. Chennithala and Congress MLA Mathew Kuzhalnadan, who allegedly suggested that the electoral-roll revision had benefited the UDF in Kerala.

Besides, Mr. Chennithala had approached the Kerala High Court in 2021 over the purported multiple and bogus entries in the electoral rolls ahead of the Assembly election, Mr. Rajesh pointed out.  

He added that the Congress’s criticism of the ECI was particularly inconsistent because the party had won elections conducted by the same constitutional body in states including Karnataka and Telangana.

The Mayor also sought to contrast the Congress’s approach with that of the BJP, saying his party had strived to expand its organisational presence in states and local bodies where it had historically lacked power. He cited the electoral victory at the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation as an example of such efforts.

“If at all we suffer setbacks in any state like Karnataka, we function as a constructive opposition,” Mr. Rajesh said, asserting that the Congress should adopt a similar approach rather than seeking to weaken public confidence in democratic institutions.