Politics

CPI Forms Human Chain in Delhi Calling for CEC’s Resignation and Rollback of SIR

By The Hindu Bureau

On Tuesday, October 27, 2026, the Communist Party of India (CPI) organized a human chain from its headquarters at Ajoy Bhawan to ITO in New Delhi. The protest demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the immediate rollback of the nationwide special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which the party said had disenfranchised citizens. CPI general secretary D. Raja addressed the gathering, stating that Mr. Kumar had "lost the confidence of the people" and that his continued tenure threatened the credibility of the electoral process. He also criticized the denotification of Jantar Mantar as a protest site, calling for its reopening and arguing that the move curtailed democratic dissent and reflected growing intolerance toward people’s movements. The CPI issued a statement asserting that democracy could not function effectively if citizens were denied both voting rights and the right to protest. It reiterated demands for the withdrawal of the SIR, the reopening of Jantar Mantar, and the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner. Participants included CPI National Secretariat members Amarjeet Kaur, P. Sandosh Kumar, Rama Krushna Panda, Girish Sharma, Annie Raja, K. Prakash Babu and K. Ramakrishna, CPI MP P.P. Suneer, CPI Delhi secretary Dinesh Varshney, National Federation of Indian Women general secretary Nisha Sidhu, All India Kisan Sabha president Rajan Kshirsagar, and representatives of other CPI‑affiliated organisations. The party urged political parties, civil society groups and citizens to intensify protests against what it described as vote chori (theft) and to seek a transparent, independent and accountable Election Commission.