ECI quashes Ramesh's request for time to detail 'Shah-called-DMs' charges
The Election Commission of India on Monday dismissed a request from Congress leader Jairam Ramesh for additional time to detail his allegations against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Ramesh had accused Shah of contacting 150 district magistrates nationwide after the Lok Sabha elections voting concluded. The ECI had directed Ramesh to file his response by 7:00pm on Monday. Failure to do so would lead them to presume he had nothing substantive to say and they would proceed with appropriate action.
Chief Election Commissioner responds to allegations
Earlier in the day, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar sharply responded to Ramesh's allegations earlier in the day, saying it was not "right to spread rumors and doubt everyone." He challenged Ramesh to provide evidence of his claims, promising punishment for any proven misconduct. The ECI had said that no district magistrate reported any undue influence.
'Always here…': CEC Kumar's response to 'Laapataa Gentlemen' memes
Separately, CEC Kumar on Monday addressed a press conference, ahead of the declaration of Lok Sabha election results on Tuesday. The press briefing comes a day after two separate delegations of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance and the ruling National Democratic Alliance approached the Election Commission of India for the counting day. Dismissing memes that referred to the election commissioners as "Laapataa Gentlemen," CEC Kumar said that the ECs were always present and never went missing.
'Next general elections to conclude by end of April'
Kumar also said the ECI will ensure that next general election concludes by the end of April, having learnt its lesson from the relentless heatwave that claimed the lives of 33 on-duty poll workers. He described the counting process as "absolutely robust," addressing all issues raised by multi-party delegations. Kumar shared that over 90% of 495 Model Code of Conduct complaints were resolved during the elections and the ECI effectively controlled deep fakes and AI-generated synthetic content during the election.
Vote counting to begin tomorrow at 8am
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections—the second longest since 1951-52—spanned six weeks and seven phases. The extensive electoral process started on April 19, followed by phases on April 26, May 7, May 20, May 25, and June 1. The vote counting will begin at 8:00am on Tuesday and will continue until all votes from the 543 constituencies are tallied by the ECI.
