First get ‘hatchet man’ CEC to resign: Congress on Shah’s SIR debate dare

• Jairam Ramesh demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation and suspension of SIR before the government convenes a special Parliament session

• The Congress accuses the BJP of pushing Delimitation Bills without consulting the Opposition and calls for an all-party meeting

• Amit Shah challenges Rahul Gandhi to debate EVMs, SIR and infiltration in Parliament, accusing the Congress of obstructing proceedings and protecting illegal immigrants

The Congress on Tuesday challenged Union home minister Amit Shah's offer to convene a special session of Parliament to discuss the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, demanding that he first seek the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and suspend the exercise.

Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said Shah should demonstrate his seriousness about holding a parliamentary debate by addressing the Opposition's concerns over the Election Commission's ongoing revision of electoral rolls.

Pointing out that 82 days had passed since the Monsoon Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die without being prorogued, Ramesh alleged that the government was keeping open the possibility of convening a special session to push through the proposed Delimitation Bills.

In a post on X, he claimed that the proposed legislation was intended to protect the BJP from an electoral setback in 2029, although its details had not yet been made public.

Taking a swipe at Shah, whom he sarcastically described as a "self-styled Chanakya", Ramesh accused the Home Minister of changing his position on discussing SIR in Parliament.

He recalled that when the Opposition had sought a debate on the exercise last year, Shah had rejected the demand, arguing that SIR fell within the Election Commission's jurisdiction.

"If the home minister is serious about a special session on vote chori, he should first secure the resignation of his hatchet man CEC Gyanesh Kumar. He should also suspend SIR," Ramesh said.

He also demanded that the government share its proposed Delimitation Bills with the Opposition well in advance and convene an all-party meeting to discuss the proposals.

The Congress leader's remarks came a day after Shah challenged Rahul Gandhi to debate issues including electronic voting machines (EVMs), SIR and alleged infiltration in Parliament, saying the government was ready to convene a special session for the purpose.

Addressing the BJP's 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' padayatra in Hyderabad, Shah dismissed the INDIA bloc's rally in Delhi on Sunday as a "save infiltrator" campaign.

He questioned the Congress's criticism of EVMs, asking how the party had managed to form governments in states such as Telangana if the machines were unreliable. Shah also said Gandhi could become Prime Minister only in a mock Parliament.

"Rahul ji, you don't allow Parliament to run. Be it EVMs, SIR, infiltrators, I challenge you from Hyderabad. We are ready to convene a special session of Parliament. Come for debate," Shah said.

He further accused the Congress of disrupting parliamentary proceedings to remain politically relevant and alleged that the party was opposing SIR to protect illegal immigrants from Bangladesh whose names, he claimed, appeared on electoral rolls.

Shah asserted that the BJP would remove every infiltrator from the electoral rolls and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi would politically expose the Congress if a special parliamentary session was convened.

The exchange has intensified the political confrontation between the BJP and the Congress over electoral roll revision, allegations of electoral irregularities and the proposed delimitation exercise.

With PTI inputs