The conduct of India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, shows that he has reached the brink of a fall, KC Venugopal, general secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC), has said. He made the attack at a press conference organised by the opposition INDIA alliance.
The senior Congress leader made the remark amid the political heat across the country over protecting the right to vote and the role of the Election Commission.
As a movement builds across the country over the Special Intensive Revision of the voter rolls and the demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the central government is accused of trying to silence the opposition.
Venugopal alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah were making desperate efforts together to shield the chief election commissioner. This would not save the government in the end, he said, and would become the main cause of its fall. He said the Modi government was afraid of the opposition’s peaceful movement, and that out of that fear repressive measures were being taken, such as closing metro stations, heavy police security and detentions in Delhi, Mumbai and other parts of the country.
The INDIA alliance has called a large protest rally in Delhi next Monday in its campaign to restore transparency to the electoral process and secure people’s right to vote. Opposition leaders have already met the president of India and set out their concerns.
The alliance’s top leaders are also due to meet the chief justice of India (CJI) next Monday in support of their demand. Venugopal said clearly that the opposition parties’ movement would continue at every level until democratic values and the electoral system are reformed.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report