Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke has called for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Election Commission of India’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Dipke’s comments came after The Indian Express revealed that more than 13 crore names have been struck off draft electoral rolls in 30 states and Union Territories during the SIR exercise.
Even as these are happening the Election Commission and the processes of adding or removing names on electoral rolls have come into the spotlight. The SIR was first introduced in Bihar in June 2025 and then spread to other parts of the country. The Election Commission has claimed that electoral-roll revision is an essential part of the electoral-roll maintenance and that it does not have authority to change it and that political leaders and other critics have questioned the scale and implementation of the exercise.
'Biggest Traitor' Remark
Dipke launched an immediate attack on Gyanesh Kumar and called for his resignation. He accused the CEC of undermining democratic processes and alleged that the SIR exercise was being used to influence who remains on the electoral rolls.
Dipke referred to Gyanesh Kumar in very critical terms and called him a major threat to Indian democracy. These are Dipke's political allegations and have not been established as findings by the Election Commission or an independent judicial authority.
His comments followed a report by The Indian Express that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on at least 14 occasions over a period of 10 months. The objections were to voter registration, deletion and restoration of names, changes in electoral roll and access to voter databases among others, the report said.
What The Indian Express Investigation Reported
The Indian Express investigation found that the two Election Commissioners had raised concerns about decisions and orders that they said were taken without their knowledge or approval. The report said some of the objections described certain steps as “unauthorised” or “illegal” and raised concerns about the centralisation of parts of the electoral-roll database.
The investigation also uncovered disagreements in the use of Form 6 in voter registration and voter deletions and restorations. The objections have increased scrutiny of how the three-member Election Commission works and records decisions made in the electoral vote.
#WATCH | Delhi: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) Founder Abhijeet Dipke says, "A report concerning the Election Commission that surfaced yesterday proves that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar is the country's biggest traitor. He is the biggest anti-national in this country,… pic.twitter.com/HfKBMeVpgu
— ANI (@ANI) September 24, 2026
However, the Election Commission has rejected the suggestion that SIR-related decisions were made without the approval of all three commissioners. The Commission said in response to the investigation that decisions made in the exercise were unanimous and that the objections cited in the report were part of the decision-making process.
13 Crore Names Row
The reported deletion of more than 13 crore names from draft electoral rolls has been one of the main points of controversy. Draft rolls are being changed in 30 states and Union Territories in the present case but do not represent a permanent removal of eligible voters from the final electoral rolls. Names may be subject to claims, objections, verification and restoration in the electoral-roll revision process.
Dipke has made a comparison between the number of names affected and the electoral contest in the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The scale of the deletions could have political implications and the process could influence electoral outcomes.
But Dipke claimed that specific voter deletions were linked to the defeat of a certain political leader. The Indian Express investigation found that in 49 constituencies the number of deletions was greater than the victory margin, but those were not all won by the same party.
VIDEO | Cockroach Janta Party co-convenor Saurav Das (@SauravDassss) puts forward three demands related to Election Commission of India.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 24, 2026
He says, "Look, this is a very big conspiracy being plotted against the youth of the country, and we, the people of the country, will… pic.twitter.com/4Gyp8Rh5Vy
Opposition Reactions
This has also been criticized by other opposition leaders and parties. Aam Aadmi Party and Left parties have called for Gyanesh Kumar to step down from the position of CEC after the revelations of objections within the poll panel.
Other opposition leaders have also questioned the SIR process and called for greater transparency at the Election Commission. These reactions are in the context of a wider political debate over the accuracy of electoral rolls and the functioning of the poll panel.
The Election Commission, in contrast, says the SIR process is part of its constitutional duty to revise and maintain electoral rolls. The Commission denied that its decisions were made without the involvement of all three Election Commissioners.
The dispute then involves two very different issues: the SIR exercise’s scale and the Election Commission’s perceived internal objections. Although the investigation has brought previously reported internal concerns out into the public domain, allegations of deliberate manipulation of electoral outcomes remain controversial as well as documented facts about the voter roll revision process.
As the SIR exercise is again under political and public scrutiny, the handling of claims and objections, restoration of eligible voters and transparency of the Election Commission’s decision-making process will continue to be major issues in the debate over the integrity of electoral roll.
