Omar, Mehbooba flag differences within ECI, seek course correctio

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti have called for urgent corrective action after raising concerns over the electoral process and allegations of significant differences within the Election Commission of India.

Abdullah links ECI row to earlier complaints

Mr. Abdullah said the reported differences within the ECI raised wider questions about how the poll panel has been functioning.

“It opens a lot of questions. We have had persistent complaints about the way in which the ECI has functioned,” Mr. Abdullah said, referring to the controversy over reported differences within the ECI.

He said that before the SIR became an issue for the country, delimitation had been an issue for Jammu and Kashmir.

“The [delimitation] process was opaque and flawed and had been designed to benefit one political party and its supporters,” Mr. Abdullah said.

Referring to the “dissenting notes” within the EC, Mr. Abdullah said the developments required the authorities to examine the functioning of the poll panel and take corrective measures.

He framed the issue as one going to the foundation of democracy, saying elections were central to democratic trust.

“If people lose trust in elections, then what is left in a democracy?” Mr. Abdullah said.

“A democracy’s foundation is elections. The Election Commission and the Government of India should consider the issue, particularly if eligible voters were prevented from exercising their franchise,” he said.

Mr. Abdullah also alleged that individuals were being arbitrarily removed from the voter list and even denied passports.

He said that, given what had been shown and the internal divisions within the EC, it clearly indicated “daal mein kuchh kala hai (All is not well)”.

“And the statement that they’ve [ECI] issued, it is even more damning,” Mr. Abdullah said.

Mufti alleges roll manipulation

Ms. Mufti said the BJP was “subverting the electoral process by fudging electoral rolls”.

She said the alleged actions were aimed at the fundamentals of the country’s democratic identity.

“They are trying to subvert the very fundamentals of our nation, which is seen as the largest democracy in the world and which our PM proudly refers to as the mother of democracy, when he is abroad,” Ms. Mufti said.

“The two election commissioners have indicated that,” she said.

Ms. Mufti said that if the BJP continued the alleged manipulation of electoral rolls, there was a danger that at some point the country “is going to resemble a banana republic”.

At the same time, she described it as a silver lining that India still had people like the two election commissioners who, according to her, had the courage and integrity to question people in power.

Why the remarks matter

The two leaders’ comments placed the reported differences within the ECI alongside earlier complaints about the electoral process, including Mr. Abdullah’s criticism of delimitation and Ms. Mufti’s allegation of electoral-roll fudging.

Their concerns centred on public trust in elections, with Mr. Abdullah warning that democracy itself is weakened if people lose faith in the electoral process.

They also sought action from the authorities, with Mr. Abdullah calling for an examination of the poll panel’s functioning and corrective measures in light of the developments.

The remarks were made on Wednesday (September 23, 2026), and the report was published on September 24, 2026, at 02:20 am IST.

Source: The Hindu