Just ahead of the opposition INDIA bloc’s planned protest march toward the Supreme Court, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant declined a request to meet top opposition leaders. Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge had formally sought an appointment between 4:00 PM and 5:00 PM on Monday to submit a joint memorandum. However, the CJI sent a formal response declining the request, stating that he is not inclined to hold the meeting.
Explaining his decision, the Chief Justice noted that the issues the opposition intended to raise are already sub-judice before the Supreme Court, making an administrative meeting inappropriate. He further clarified that the judiciary cannot intervene in governmental governance through administrative channels and advised that leaders pursue regular judicial remedies to address grievances and seek protection of fundamental rights.
The opposition’s agitation centers on allegations of “vote theft” and large-scale deletion of voter names during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls by the Election Commission. The alliance has been demanding the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, an outright stay on the SIR process, and a return to paper ballots. The controversy intensified following reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had registered written dissents against Commission decisions on at least 14 occasions over the past ten months. The poll body, however, maintained that divergent views are an integral part of internal deliberations and affirmed that all decisions were taken strictly within statutory rules.
To amplify their demands, the Congress-led opposition organized the “Chalo Delhi – March for Democracy,” leading political leaders, youth representatives, and civil society members on a foot march from Connaught Place toward the Supreme Court. The mobilization follows an earlier demonstration on Friday, where opposition MPs were stopped at Vijay Chowk before a 10-member delegation called on President Droupadi Murmu to seek the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner. The President had directed the opposition to furnish concrete evidence of the alleged irregularities, while alliance leaders maintain that their campaign to safeguard Indian democracy will persist.
