Congress chief alleges ‘systematic conspiracy’ after Centre changes election conduct rules

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday alleged that the Union government amending an election rule to restrict public access to polls-related documents was part of a “systematic conspiracy” to undermine the Election Commission’s integrity.

Kharge wrote in a post on X that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government’s “calibrated erosion” of the Election Commission’s institutional integrity was a frontal attack on the Constitution and democracy.

Modi Govt’s audacious amendment in the Conduct of Election Rules is another assault in its systematic conspiracy to destroy the institutional integrity of the Election Commission of India.

Earlier, they had removed the Chief Justice of India from the Selection panel which… pic.twitter.com/c1u7pNdlif— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) December 22, 2024

As first reported by Scroll, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government on Friday amended Rule 93(2)(a) of the 1961 Conduct of Election Rules, which stated that “all other papers relating to the election shall be open to public inspection”.

The amended version of the rule said: “All other papers as specified in these rules relating to the election shall be open to public inspection.”

With this change notified by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, in consultation with the Election Commission, not all poll-related papers can be inspected by the public. Only those papers specified in the Conduct of Election...

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