Right to vote under threat, should be made fundamental right: Congress

Senior Indian National Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on 30 April alleged that the right to vote in India was under threat and called for it to be made a fundamental right under the Constitution.

Addressing reporters in New Delhi, Ramesh sharply criticised Gyanesh Kumar and accused the Election Commission of India of no longer functioning as a neutral institution.

Congress targets CEC

“The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer,” Ramesh said while attacking the Chief Election Commissioner.

He alleged that Kumar had become “completely compromised” and was actively participating in electoral politics instead of acting independently.

“The Election Commission has never been as compromised as it has been under him,” the Congress leader claimed.

Questions over ‘detect, delete and deport’

Referring to remarks earlier made by Amit Shah about identifying illegal immigrants, Ramesh questioned the government over the implementation of what he described as the “three Ds” policy.

“Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds — detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported,” he said.

He alleged that voter disenfranchisement had become a growing concern.

Opposition seeking removal of CEC

Ramesh said opposition parties would continue efforts in the Rajya Sabha to seek the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner.

His remarks came after opposition MPs submitted a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha seeking to move a motion against Kumar.

“We will continue our efforts for his removal because he is compromised,” Ramesh said.

Demand to make voting a fundamental right

The Congress leader also argued that the right to vote should be elevated from a statutory right to a fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution.

“I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable,” he said.

Ramesh noted that the issue had been debated during deliberations of the Constituent Assembly Debates.

Ambedkar warning cited

The former Union minister said B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned during the Constituent Assembly discussions that future governments might attempt to disenfranchise voters.

“Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens,” Ramesh asserted.

Under the current constitutional framework, voting in India is treated as a statutory right governed by election laws rather than a fundamental right enforceable directly through constitutional remedies.

The Congress and several opposition parties have recently intensified attacks on the Election Commission over voter list revisions, deletion of names and the conduct of elections in multiple states.