Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Oct 27: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday shared an image featuring three horizontal white markings and a vertical red streak symbolising Lord Shiva, along with the Sanskrit phrase “Satyam Shivam Sundaram, amid his ongoing confrontation with the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The post comes ahead of a scheduled Supreme Court hearing on petitions challenging Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the poll panel’s decisions during the SIR exercise.

A day earlier, the Election Commission defended its decision-making process before the Supreme Court, rejecting allegations that Kumar had acted unilaterally. The commission maintained that all three orders concerning the electoral roll revision were unanimous decisions taken by its three members.

Gandhi has repeatedly questioned the functioning of the Election Commission and alleged irregularities in the electoral process, charges that the poll panel has contested.

On October 11, Gandhi announced a march towards the Supreme Court and urged opposition parties, civil society organisations and citizens to join the protest against alleged “vote chori”. He said the participants would submit a memorandum to the Chief Justice of India, demanding a halt to the SIR exercise and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Gandhi had also described the Opposition’s campaign as “Tandav”, referring to Lord Shiva’s cosmic dance, and indicated that the agitation against the poll panel and the electoral roll revision would continue. His remarks came amid demonstrations in Delhi targeting the Chief Election Commissioner and the SIR process.

Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and other INDIA bloc leaders have approached the Supreme Court, challenging what they describe as the unilateral and arbitrary exercise of the Election Commission’s collective powers during the SIR implementation.

The petition questions whether decisions related to the revision were taken with the knowledge and approval of the other Election Commissioners. It also raises concerns over changes to voter-enrolment Form 6, the functioning of electoral databases and the alleged exclusion of voters without adequate notice or an effective mechanism to restore their names to the electoral rolls.

The Election Commission has denied the allegations, maintaining that the orders relating to the SIR were unanimously adopted by all three members. The Supreme Court proceedings are expected to address the legal challenges to the revision process and concerns raised by the petitioners over the commission’s decision-making and safeguards for voters.