Journalism of Courage
‘Arrest Gyanesh Kumar, cancel recent elections’: Arvind Kejriwal on Express investigation
Arvind Kejriwal said: "Gyanesh Kumar was running the Election Commission of India on his own."
Arvind Kejriwal during his video address on Wednesday.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has demanded Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar be arrested. At a press conference, following The Indian Express report, which flagged that two out of three Election Commissioners complained about being kept in the dark, adding new voters, and deleting names, Kejriwal said: “Gyanesh Kumar was running the Election Commission of India on his own.”
He also demanded the reinstatement of electoral rolls dating back three years and re-election for the state Assemblies in Delhi, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and West Bengal.
“Through this press conference, we demand that Gyanesh Kumar should be arrested and prosecuted. All the elections held in the last few years should be cancelled and held again. The Election Commission is not the name of one individual. It comprises three members… one Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners,” he said.
ALSO READ | ‘Illegal, unauthorised’: Election Commissioners objected to Form 6 change
VIDEO | Delhi: Addressing a press conference, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, says, “Through this press conference, we demand that Gyanesh Kumar (Chief Election Commissioner) should be arrested and prosecuted. All the elections held in the last few years should be… pic.twitter.com/1m4K4cER6o
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 23, 2026
“All three participate in meetings, where decisions are taken either unanimously or by majority. None of the three has the authority to take decisions individually. No single person can run the Election Commission or issue orders to its officers. The Chief Election Commissioner is described in English as ‘First Among Equals.’ All three are equal… the Chief Election Commissioner only chairs and presides over the meetings and does not have any additional authority,” Kejriwal further said.
Alleging manipulation of the voter rolls through the SIR, Kejriwal said it was the “nation’s biggest scandal” that have shaken the roots of the country.
“…The entire SIR process, in line with which over 13 crore names were struck off voter lists in 30 states is completely illegal because it had not been officially approved by the Election Commission,” he said.
READ THE EXPRESS INVESTIGATION REPORT HERE | 14 times in 10 months, two Election Commissioners objected on record to poll panel steps
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What did the Indian Express investigation find?
The Express Investigation report found that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had complained on record about being kept in the dark, adding new voters, and deleting names. They said called steps on new voters ‘unauthorised and illegal’. They even warned against voter database access being ‘centralised’ in Delhi, a step which would bypass state officials.
On concerns over integrity of voter software, the dissenting Commissioners even knocked on the Cabinet Secretary’s door. This marks an unprecedented rupture inside the Election Commission and reveals a cloud over its conduct.
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ALSO READ | ‘Act of treason’: Rahul Gandhi renews ‘vote chori’ charge after Express report
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