Thousands rallied in India’s capital Sunday in an opposition-led protest demanding the resignation of the country’s election chief over a voter list overhaul they say unfairly favors the ruling party.
The nationwide revision of electoral rolls has sparked political disputes and street protests in the world's largest democracy over the past month.
The Election Commission says the initiative is necessary to ensure accurate voter rolls, but the opposition claims it is being manipulated to favor Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Both the Election Commission and the BJP deny the accusations.
On Sunday, protesters led by opposition leader Rahul Gandhi of the Congress party chanted "vote thief, leave your seat" and beat drums while marching from central New Delhi to Ramlila Maidan, a large outdoor venue.
"I have been a voter since I was 18 and now I find myself removed from the list," protester Nandita, 46, said, who gave only one name.
"It's important to be here because of the way things are going. The cost of living is going up. The only option is to take to the streets peacefully," she added.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), an online youth-led protest movement, has also thrown its weight behind the campaign against the voter roll revision.
The overhaul of India's voter rolls led to the removal of more than 133 million names, according to figures reported by Indian media and cited by opposition parties in court filings.
Critics say the removals have disproportionately affected minorities, particularly Muslims.
Members of the Hindu-nationalist BJP have long alleged that large numbers of undocumented Muslim migrants from neighboring Bangladesh have fraudulently entered India's voter rolls.
Election authorities say the revision was intended to eliminate duplicate, deceased and fraudulent entries and that eligible voters remain entitled to apply for inclusion on the voter rolls.
Human Rights Watch said the removal of voters was "arbitrary and deeply flawed."
"The authorities should immediately scrap the voter roll revision process that has denied India's most marginalized people their right to vote and other government services," it said in a statement this week.
The CJP has been heavily involved in the pushback to the voter roll revision and police temporarily detained several of its leaders during protests last month.
The CJP has gained millions of followers on social media since it was launched in May.
Earlier protests organized by the CJP in July over exam irregularities forced the resignation of the education minister, marking a rare climb down by Modi's administration.
