Agitation against CEC will continue till it is removed: Venugopal

KC Venugopal. File | Photo credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap

AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal on Sunday (Nov) said the Congress-led agitation against CEC Gyanesh Kumar will continue until he is removed from office and the country’s electoral system is made impartial and transparent.

Also read | Gyanesh Kumar will soon be forced to resign, says KC Venugopal

Speaking to reporters in Alappuzha, Mr. Venugopal said protests were continuing across states and districts, with only a short break expected during the Deepavali festival.

He termed the November 1 rally organized by the Congress in Delhi as one of the strongest protests in the country and said the party was fighting against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

“We will withdraw from this agitation only after Gyanesh Kumar is removed from office and steps are taken to make India’s electoral system and processes flawless, impartial and fair. This is not a fight we will abandon midway,” he said.

Venugopal argued that erasing names from electoral rolls would deprive poor people of their voting rights and access to various government benefits, which he argued were increasingly linked to voter IDs.

He said the Congress would launch a nationwide ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’ (Save the vote, save the nation) campaign at the panchayat level in the next one-and-a-half months.

As part of the campaign, the party would appoint a “Vote Rakshak” (guardian) at each polling station to examine the electoral rolls, identify people whose names have been deleted and visit their homes to help restore their names, he said.

Congress units were organizing programs across states and districts while plans were being made for joint programs with other political parties, he said.

Mr. Venugopal said the issue would be strongly raised during the upcoming session of Parliament, adding that the opposition would take up the recent controversies and issues affecting the public.

Referring to the previous Parliament session, he claimed that Amit Shah could not enter the House for almost two weeks due to opposition protests.

Asked about the functioning of the Kerala government, Mr. Venugopal said the state had a capable administration and would address the issues raised against it.

He said isolated incidents and administrative lapses were inevitable but the government would take appropriate action whenever necessary.

He defended the government’s handling of allegations linking Excise Minister M Lija to bar owners, saying members of the public were familiar with people, including businessmen, in their constituencies.

Mr. Venugopal said the former Excise Commissioner, Seeram Sambasiva Rao, should have leveled allegations of corruption in the department when he was still in office. However, the government has agreed to look into the complaint and take necessary action, he added.

Published – 8 Nov 2026 14:41 IST