Assam: Dhubri BJP defends CEC Gyanesh Kumar, urges Opposition to verify allegations

The Dhubri district unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday, September 29, defended Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar amid political criticism of the Election Commission of India (ECI), urging political parties to verify reports before making allegations against constitutional institutions.

Addressing a press conference at the BJP office in Dhubri, Dhubri Municipal Board chairman and senior BJP leader Debamoy Sanyal questioned the political interpretation of a recent English daily report on alleged differences within the three-member Election Commission.

The report had said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period concerning various decisions and processes.

Sanyal said political parties should not treat what he described as an “unconfirmed report” as established fact. The Election Commission has maintained that its decisions were taken unanimously and that differences and observations during internal deliberations were part of its decision-making process.

Defending Kumar, Sanyal highlighted his administrative career, noting that he is a 1988-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Kerala cadre who held several senior positions in the Central government.

Sanyal also rejected suggestions that Kumar’s interactions with senior political leaders should automatically be viewed as evidence of political bias. He said interactions between senior bureaucrats and ministers were part of normal government functioning.

The BJP leader accused Opposition parties of creating apprehension over the functioning of the electoral system and urged them to base their political discourse on verified information.

“If a strong Opposition is present, the country moves forward,” Sanyal said, adding that the BJP did not seek an Opposition-free political system.

He also cited the BJP's electoral performance in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, arguing that its setbacks in the two states did not support allegations that the CEC had systematically favoured the party.

Sanyal further referred to remarks made by US President Donald Trump on India's electoral system and said political leaders should consider such statements in their entirety rather than selectively citing them.

On a suggestion by a BJP leader in West Bengal that Kumar should be considered for the Padma Vibhushan, Sanyal said such decisions rested with the competent authorities and the party's senior leadership.

He expressed confidence in Kumar's experience as a public servant and said the CEC should not be “unnecessarily humiliated or blamed” for matters for which he was not responsible.

Dhubri BJP district president Ranjit Kumar Roy, Debaprasad Singha, Umesh Kumar Roy and other district leaders were present at the press conference.