By Rahil Nora Chopra
The Opposition parties have increased their demand for the removal and arrest of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The Cockroach Janta Party gave the Centre a fresh ultimatum, threatening a second Jantar Mantar protest if Gyanesh Kumar did not resign in 48 hours. While the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi claimed that all elections were being rigged in the country. Gandhi further said that the two Election Commissioners had done a wise move by revealing their multiple written objections and disapprovals, while adding that the CEC must think seriously and turn approver. Meanwhile, INDIA bloc allies are preparing to submit a fresh notice in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha seeking Gyanesh Kumar’s removal. This will be the third attempt by the Opposition to move a motion for Kumar’s removal. The notice is being drafted and will be vetted by legal experts before being submitted in both Houses of Parliament. A notice submitted by 73 Opposition MPs on April 24 seeking Kumar’s removal is pending in the Rajya Sabha. Meanwhile, the Election Commission, however, has rejected any suggestion that its decisions were divided or that the two Election Commissioners had formally dissented from decisions of the full Commission.
WILL AKHILESH REACH CONSENSUS ON SEAT-SHARING WITH CONGRESS IN UP?
Political activity in Uttar Pradesh has been intensifying once again after Samajwadi Party MP from Kairana, Iqra Hasan, touched a raw nerve by asserting that Akhilesh Yadav is the only one who could defeat the BJP. “On its own, the Congress won’t be able to achieve much,” she added. But on the other hand, the remark did not go down well with the Congress. Saharanpur MP Imran Masood countered Hasan, claiming it is Rahul Gandhi who unnerves the BJP. According to sources, Akhilesh Yadav was not inclined to allocate more than 60 seats to the Congress, even though the INC is demanding 100 seats. Akhilesh Yadav has a major challenge ahead of him to reach a consensus on seat-sharing with Congress and agree on a common minimum programme. The SP had won 111 seats and the Congress just two in the 2022 Assembly elections. As for seat-sharing, the final decision will be made through direct communication between Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi. While there will undoubtedly be some bargaining over the number of seats, leaders from both parties remain optimistic that a mutually acceptable solution will be achieved.
BSP APPOINTS ISHAN ANAND, MAYAWATI’S NEWPHEW, AS NATIONAL CONVENER
The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has appointed Ishan Anand, younger nephew of party president Mayawati, as its new national convener, after his elder brother Akash Anand was removed from all party responsibilities. The decision was made at a meeting of the BSP’s national executive conducted at the party headquarters in Lucknow, chaired by Mayawati. Ishan and Akash are the sons of Anand Kumar, Mayawati’s younger brother and a BSP national vice-president, While the BSP chief also clarified that the party would contest the upcoming Assembly elections on the basis of its own organisational prowess and not with the support of any other party. She appealed to party workers to occupy themselves fully in election preparations and move forward with the entire community. She instructed party officials to select strong and competent candidates, strengthen the organisation and ensure implementation of the election directives issued earlier at the grassroots level.
O P RAJBHAR TALKS OF DIVIDING UP INTO FOUR STATES, AKHILESH MIFFED
Ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, UP minister and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar has asserted that UP will eventually be categorised into four states — Purvanchal, Madhyanchal, Bundelkhand and Harit Pradesh — and a Rajbhar’s son will become the chief minister when the Purvanchal state is formed. “If the chief minister is to be from any caste, then a Rajbhar’s son will become the chief minister,” he said. Rajbhar, an NDA ally, also linked the proposed division to the completion of the caste census and claimed he had consulted the matter with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. However, Rajbhar’s claim found favour from Congress leader Imran Masood who backed the idea of dividing Uttar Pradesh into smaller states, citing the argument that the state’s large geographical size makes administration and travel difficult. On the other hand, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav dismissed the idea and warned against attempts to divide the country and the state. Rajbhars are an OBC community concentrated mainly in Purvanchal, particularly Ghazipur, Mau, Ballia, Varanasi, Chandauli, Azamgarh and adjoining eastern UP districts. According to estimates, around 3-4% of UP’s population and 17-18% in Purvanchal, the eastern part of the state. Such concentration provides the community political weight across several eastern UP constituencies. (IPA Service)
