India election chief faces march to top court over...

Summary

• Thousands marched to the Supreme Court in New Delhi on Monday to demand that the India election chief quit over a disputed revision of voter rolls.
• Why the India election chief faces protestsThe revision has removed more than 130 million names from voter lists, according to media reports.
• Together, they want the revision halted and the India election chief removed from office.

AI Generated Summary

Thousands marched to the Supreme Court in New Delhi on Monday to demand that the India election chief quit over a disputed revision of voter rolls.

Opposition MPs and their backers wanted to deliver a petition to the chief justice. It urged Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to step down. Meanwhile, crowds chanted slogans and waved placards as they moved through the heavily guarded capital.

“The government has to listen to the voice of the people,” said Abhay Aryan, a 28-year-old demonstrator. He added that the size of the crowd spoke for itself.

Why the India election chief faces protests

The revision has removed more than 130 million names from voter lists, according to media reports. Critics say the exercise hit minorities hardest, particularly Muslims, and could favour the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, the Election Commission of India rejects any claim of wrongdoing. The body, which oversees voting for the world’s largest population, says the purge only targets duplicate, dead and fake entries. The ruling party also denies any manipulation.