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

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh. File | Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar The Congress on Tuesday (November 3, 2026) hit back at Home Minister Amit Shah over his remarks that the government is ready to convene a special session of Parliament on the SIR issue, saying if he is serious about the proposal, he should first secure the resignation of his "hatchet man", Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, and also suspend SIR.Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said 82 days have gone by since the Monsoon Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die and it has still not been prorogued."This is because the Home Minister is still entertaining ideas of calling a Special Session to pass the Delimitation Bills with a super-tainted two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha," Mr. Ramesh alleged.The content of these Bills is still not known, although its intent is clear - to save the BJP from the debacle that is staring at it in 2029, he said on X.संसद का मानसून सत्र अनिश्चितकाल के लिए स्थगित हुए 82 दिन बीत चुके हैं, लेकिन अब तक उसका सत्रावसान नहीं किया गया है। इसकी वजह यह है कि गृह मंत्री अब भी लोकसभा में बहुत ही कलंकित दो-तिहाई बहुमत के दम पर परिसीमन विधेयकों को पारित कराने के लिए संसद का विशेष सत्र बुलाने के विकल्प पर विचार कर रहे हैं। इन विधेयकों में क्या है, यह अब तक सामने नहीं आया है, लेकिन इनका मकसद साफ है कि किसी तरह से 2029 में BJP के सामने दिख रही करारी हार से बचाया जाए। इस बीच, खुद को चाणक्य समझने वाले, झांसेबाजी, डींगें हांकने और खोखली बयानबाजी के माहिर गृह मंत्री कह रहे हैं कि वह वोट चोरी पर चर्चा के लिए संसद का विशेष सत्र बुलाने को तैयार हैं। पिछले साल जब पूरे विपक्ष ने SIR पर चर्चा की मांग की थी, तब उन्होंने यह कहकर इनकार कर दिया था कि SIR चुनाव आयोग के अधिकार क्षेत्र का मामला है। अगर गृह मंत्री वोट चोरी पर विशेष सत्र बुलाने को लेकर गंभीर हैं, तो उन्हें अपने इशारे पर काम करने वाले CEC ज्ञानेश कुमार का इस्तीफा सुनिश्चित करना चाहिए। उन्हें SIR की प्रक्रिया भी रोकनी चाहिए। और हां, परिसीमन को लेकर अपने नए प्रस्ताव उन्हें काफी पहले विपक्ष के साथ साझा करने चाहिए। आखिर इन प्रस्तावों पर विस्तार से चर्चा के लिए सर्वदलीय बैठक बुलाने का साहस वे क्यों नहीं दिखा पा रहे हैं?— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 3, 2026"Meanwhile, the self-styled Chanakya, the master of bluff, bombast and bluster says he is ready for a Special Session to discuss vote chori. Last year, when the combined Opposition wanted a debate on SIR he had refused, saying SIR was the prerogative of the Election Commission," Mr. Ramesh said."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," the Congress leader said.And, of course, he should also be sharing with the Opposition well in advance his new proposals for Delimitation, Mr. Ramesh added.Why doesn't he have the courage to convene an all-party meeting to discuss these proposals in detail, the Congress leader said.Mr. Ramesh's remarks come a day after Mr. Shah said the government is ready to convene a special session of Parliament on the issue and dared Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to debate the matter in the House.Dismissing the INDIA bloc's rally in Delhi on Sunday (November 1, 2026) as a "save infiltrator" rally, he wondered how the Congress formed governments in States, including Telangana, if the EVMs are bad, and said that Rahul Gandhi can become Prime Minister only in mock Parliament.Leading the BJP's 'Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy' padayatra in New Delhi, Mr. Shah said: "He [Rahul] holds the Constitution in hand, but doesn't respect the Constitution. 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."If a Parliament session is held, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will "shred Congress into pieces," he said and accused the Congress of wishing to be in the limelight through "anarchy."The grand old party was trying to stop the SIR exercise to protect "infiltrators from Bangladesh" in the electoral rolls, he alleged and asserted that the BJP would remove every infiltrator from the electoral rolls. Published - November 03, 2026 12:29 pm IST