DMK demands removal of CEC Gyanesh Kumar; return to paper ballots

M.K. Stalin. File | Photo Credit: S. Siva Saravanan

A meeting of DMK MPs on Saturday (October 17, 2026) demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, alleging that he had overseen the deletion of voters’ names under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), overriding the objections of the other two Election Commissioners.

“He must be removed and subjected to an appropriate inquiry,” said a resolution adopted at the meeting chaired by DMK president M.K. Stalin.

The DMK also made a case for a return to paper ballots, arguing that the credibility of electronic voting machines (EVMs) had come under scrutiny because of alleged discrepancies between votes recorded in EVMs and the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) slips.