Gyanesh Kumar's first speech since accusation

Hindustan Times

a day ago

Speaking for the first time since Congress leaders accused the Election Commission of rigging the 2024 Maharashtra polls and manipulating electoral rolls, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar defended the process, calling it one of the world's most transparent democratic exercises.
Delivering a keynote at the Stockholm International Conference on Electoral Integrity in Sweden on Tuesday evening, Kumar said India's electoral exercise-- including the annual revision of rolls--is conducted under intense public and institutional scrutiny, describing it as 'an act akin to concurrent auditing at every stage.'
The event, hosted by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), was attended by over 100 participants from election management bodies representing nearly 50 countries.
Kumar highlighted the 'robust mechanisms' underpinning India's electoral process, which he said have ensured its credibility for decades. 'There is a process of statutory sharing of India's electoral roll with all recognised political parties every year during revision and before every election since 1960. It includes provisions for claims, objections, and appeals — making it one of the most rigorous and transparent electoral exercises globally,' said Kumar, as quoted in an ECI press release. 'This mechanism plays a vital role in reinforcing electoral credibility year after year.'
He also reaffirmed the Election Commission's role in supporting capacity-building initiatives for election management bodies worldwide. Kumar described India's democracy as the 'strongest and biggest in the world,' calling Indian elections 'a wonder' for their unmatched diversity and scale.
Back home, however, the Election Commission faces mounting criticism from the Congress party. The Opposition has questioned the sharp increase in voter turnout on November 20, 2024, as well as a sudden spike in the number of electors in Maharashtra. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, in a recent op-ed, accused the ECI of enabling 'industrial-scale rigging' and described the Maharashtra elections as a 'blueprint for rigging democracy.' While the Commission dismissed the allegations as misinformation, neither the ECI nor the CEC had issued an official response until now.
In his Sweden address, Kumar also elaborated on the logistical scale of elections in India. According to the ECI, over 20 million personnel--including polling staff, police forces, observers, and party agents--were involved in conducting the recent parliamentary elections.
'At the time of elections, the ECI becomes the world's largest organisation, surpassing the workforce of many national governments and global corporations. It ensures that nearly one billion Indian electors are able to exercise their franchise freely,' said the ECI press note quoting Kumar.
He also traced the evolution of India's electoral system, from 173 million electors in 1951–52 to 979 million in 2024, and from just 200,000 polling stations in the early years to more than 1.05 million today.
'The 2024 general elections saw the participation of 743 political parties-- including six national and 67 state parties--and 20,271 candidates. Elections were conducted across the country using 6.2 million Electronic Voting Machines reaffirming the Commission's ability to conduct inclusive, efficient, and secure elections,' the release added.