Supreme Court advocate Balraj Malik has demanded the arrest and prosecution of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar following an investigative report by The Indian Express that highlighted internal objections raised by two other Election Commissioners over several decisions concerning electoral rolls and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).The controversy has intensified around the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI) after the report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi formally recorded objections at least 14 times over a 10-month period. The objections reportedly concerned decisions they said were issued without their knowledge or approval.What did the Indian Express report reveal?According to The Indian Express investigation, Sandhu and Joshi raised objections on several issues connected with voter registration, deletion and restoration of names, appeals concerning electoral-roll decisions and access to the voter database.One major issue involved changes to Form 6, which is used for registering new voters. The report said the commissioners questioned changes requiring applicants to provide information relating to their or their family members' presence in earlier electoral rolls. One objection reportedly described the change as “unauthorised and illegal.” The investigation also reported concerns about the increasing centralisation of access to electoral-roll databases through the ECI's technology systems. Questions were raised about the role and access of state-level election officials to the voter database.Other reported objections included issues involving appeals filed in West Bengal concerning voters and software-related problems in Goa that affected the inclusion of eligible voters. Why is Balraj Malik demanding Gyanesh Kumar's arrest?Following the report, Balraj Malik demands arrest of CEC Gyanesh Kumar, alleging serious institutional misconduct and calling for legal action.Malik's demand is a statement by the advocate and should not be treated as a judicial finding that Gyanesh Kumar committed a crime. No court ruling establishing criminal liability against the CEC has been identified in the reporting reviewed for this article.The Gyanesh Kumar arrest demand has nevertheless become part of the wider political and legal controversy surrounding the Election Commission and its handling of electoral-roll revision.What has the Election Commission said?The Election Commission has rejected the suggestion that the reported objections demonstrate a breakdown in decision-making.In its response after the Indian Express investigation, the ECI said that operational questions and inputs raised by commissioners during the drafting stage are part of normal institutional deliberation. The Commission maintained that final decisions taken over the previous 10 months, including decisions relating to SIR, were unanimous.The ECI also argued that focusing on selected internal notes without considering the larger body of approvals and decisions gives only one part of the institutional process. A statement issued by the Commission was signed by all three commissioners, according to India Today. What is the wider Election Commission controversy?The dispute is linked to the nationwide Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, under which the Election Commission has been reviewing voter lists.The reported disagreements have raised questions about how decisions are made within the three-member Commission and how electoral data and voter-registration systems are administered.Under the legal framework governing the Commission, its business is generally intended to be handled collectively, with disagreements resolved according to theAlso Read : Supreme Court Split Over Pleas Challenging Election Commission Appointment Law
