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A group of 272 senior citizens from civil society wrote on Wednesday expressing their full support for the Election Commission (EC) against the opposition’s allegations.
The group is led by former Delhi High Court Justice S. N. Dhingra and former Jharkhand DGP Nirmala Kaur.
“We, the senior citizens of civil society, express our grave concern that India’s democracy is under assault, not by force, but by a rising tide of venomous rhetoric directed toward its foundational institutions. Some political leaders, instead of offering genuine policy alternatives, resort to provocative but unsubstantiated accusations as part of their theatrical political strategy,” the letter said.
“After their attempts to tarnish the Indian Armed Forces by questioning their valour and accomplishments, and the judiciary by questioning its fairness, Parliament and its constitutional functionaries, it is now the turn of the Election Commission of India to face systematic and conspiratorial attacks on its integrity and reputation.”
In the three-page letter, the senior citizens mentioned the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, stating that he has repeatedly attacked the EC, declaring that he has open-and-shut proof that the Commission is involved in vote theft and claiming he has 100 per cent proof.
“Using unbelievably uncouth rhetoric, he has said that what he has found is an atom bomb and that when it explodes, the EC will have no place to hide. He has also issued threats that whoever in the Election Commission is involved in this exercise, from top to bottom, will not be spared. According to him, the ECI is indulging in treason. He has gone on record threatening that if the CEC or ECs retire, he will hound them,” the letter said.
The senior citizens further stated that despite such scathing accusations, no formal complaint has been filed by him (Rahul Gandhi), along with the prescribed sworn affidavit, thereby evading accountability for levelling unsubstantiated allegations and threatening public servants performing their duty.
The eminent citizens also said that when electoral outcomes are favourable in States where opposition-driven political parties form governments, criticism of the EC disappears.
“When they are unfavourable in certain States, the EC becomes the villain in every narrative. This selective outrage exposes opportunism, not conviction. It is a convenient deflection to create the impression that loss is not a result of strategy, but of conspiracy,” the letter said.
The citizens appealed to civil society to stand firmly with the EC, not out of flattery but out of conviction. “Society should demand that political actors stop undermining this vital institution with baseless allegations and theatrical denunciations,” the letter said.
The eminent citizens also called upon the EC to continue its path of transparency and rigour, publish complete data, defend itself through legal channels when necessary, and reject politics dressed up as victimhood.
Several former judges, ambassadors, and bureaucrats are among the signatories.
The group is led by former Delhi High Court Justice S. N. Dhingra and former Jharkhand DGP Nirmala Kaur.
“We, the senior citizens of civil society, express our grave concern that India’s democracy is under assault, not by force, but by a rising tide of venomous rhetoric directed toward its foundational institutions. Some political leaders, instead of offering genuine policy alternatives, resort to provocative but unsubstantiated accusations as part of their theatrical political strategy,” the letter said.
“After their attempts to tarnish the Indian Armed Forces by questioning their valour and accomplishments, and the judiciary by questioning its fairness, Parliament and its constitutional functionaries, it is now the turn of the Election Commission of India to face systematic and conspiratorial attacks on its integrity and reputation.”
In the three-page letter, the senior citizens mentioned the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, stating that he has repeatedly attacked the EC, declaring that he has open-and-shut proof that the Commission is involved in vote theft and claiming he has 100 per cent proof.
“Using unbelievably uncouth rhetoric, he has said that what he has found is an atom bomb and that when it explodes, the EC will have no place to hide. He has also issued threats that whoever in the Election Commission is involved in this exercise, from top to bottom, will not be spared. According to him, the ECI is indulging in treason. He has gone on record threatening that if the CEC or ECs retire, he will hound them,” the letter said.
The senior citizens further stated that despite such scathing accusations, no formal complaint has been filed by him (Rahul Gandhi), along with the prescribed sworn affidavit, thereby evading accountability for levelling unsubstantiated allegations and threatening public servants performing their duty.
The eminent citizens also said that when electoral outcomes are favourable in States where opposition-driven political parties form governments, criticism of the EC disappears.
“When they are unfavourable in certain States, the EC becomes the villain in every narrative. This selective outrage exposes opportunism, not conviction. It is a convenient deflection to create the impression that loss is not a result of strategy, but of conspiracy,” the letter said.
The citizens appealed to civil society to stand firmly with the EC, not out of flattery but out of conviction. “Society should demand that political actors stop undermining this vital institution with baseless allegations and theatrical denunciations,” the letter said.
The eminent citizens also called upon the EC to continue its path of transparency and rigour, publish complete data, defend itself through legal channels when necessary, and reject politics dressed up as victimhood.
Several former judges, ambassadors, and bureaucrats are among the signatories.
