Mamata Banerjee accuses CEC Gyanesh Kumar of 'hijacking' Bengal vote count
Synopsis
Mamata Banerjee stood at Ramlila Maidan and levelled her most direct attack yet on CEC Gyanesh Kumar, alleging he 'centrally hijacked' Bengal's vote count and that over one crore voters were erased from rolls before the polls. With the INDIA bloc's 'Dilli Chalo' rally as backdrop, the former Bengal CM is framing electoral integrity as the defining battle of the opposition's next campaign.
Key Takeaways
Mamata Banerjee alleged at the INDIA bloc Dilli Chalo rally at Ramlila Maidan on 1 November 2026 that CEC Gyanesh Kumar 'centrally hijacked' Bengal's vote count.
She claimed more than one crore voters were removed from West Bengal's electoral rolls before the Assembly polls.
Banerjee accused the BJP of 'protecting' the CEC and called on central agencies to remain impartial.
She expressed solidarity with the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and thanked students and Gen Z supporters for backing the protest.
The rally was organised to demand the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner over alleged electoral irregularities.
All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday, 1 November 2026, alleged that Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar had 'vanished' votes during the counting of West Bengal's Assembly polls by 'centrally hijacking' the system. The allegations were made from the stage of the INDIA bloc's 'Dilli Chalo' rally at Ramlila Maidan, New Delhi, organised to demand the CEC's resignation over alleged electoral irregularities.
What Banerjee Alleged at the Rally
Addressing a large gathering, Banerjee charged that more than one crore voters were removed from electoral rolls in Bengal even before the Assembly polls were conducted. She claimed that the TMC did not lose the election but was 'defeated' through systemic manipulation. 'They have looted EVMs, democracy, Constitution, people's rights, and counting of votes,' she alleged. 'Gyanesh Kumar has not only vanished votes but rather vanished the entire counting of votes in the Bengal polls by centrally hijacking the system,' she further charged.
In a sharp jibe directed at the CEC, Banerjee asked: 'Vanish Kumar, when will you vanish?' She also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of 'protecting' the election commissioner and alleged that central agencies were functioning as 'puppets of the BJP', urging them to remain impartial.
SIR and Electoral Roll Deletions
Banerjee referred to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging that Bengal had been made 'a victim of the circumstances resulting from the SIR'. With pointed sarcasm, she remarked that for the BJP, SIR stands for 'Special Intensive Relief'. The opposition has broadly questioned the SIR process, alleging that it was used to disenfranchise voters in opposition-held constituencies. These are allegations the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the BJP have not yet formally responded to in the context of Banerjee's specific remarks at this rally.
Wider Allegations Against the BJP Government
The former Bengal CM also accused the BJP-led government at the Centre of 'looting' jobs and 'hijacking' elections, and alleged that funds from the Ram Temple and temples in Bengal, as well as Waqf properties, had been misappropriated — all allegations the BJP denies. Inverting the ruling party's signature slogan 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas', Banerjee said: 'Now people say BJP Ka Saath, Sabka Sarvanash.'
Call to INDIA Bloc and Youth
Banerjee expressed solidarity with the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which had staged multiple protests earlier in the month against the CEC, and extended gratitude to civil society members, students, and 'Gen Z' supporters for their backing. 'Bengal is the victim of the circumstances resulting from the SIR. We will keep fighting even if we have to sacrifice our lives for this,' she declared. She urged the CJP and the youth to unite 'in this fight of saving democracy', vowing: 'We will take our revenge politically. We will keep on fighting.'
The rally signals a sharpening of the opposition's campaign against the Election Commission ahead of future electoral cycles, with Banerjee emerging as one of its most vocal faces.
Point of View
And her own voter base in Bengal where TMC's unexpected losses demand a credible explanation. The 'centrally hijacked' framing is politically potent but legally unsubstantiated so far; without documented evidence, it risks being absorbed as partisan theatre rather than a serious accountability demand. What is harder to dismiss is the claim around electoral roll deletions: the ECI has not publicly released ward-level data on the SIR-linked removals in Bengal, and that opacity itself feeds the controversy. The bigger story here may not be what Banerjee said, but whether the opposition can translate these allegations into a verifiable, court-backed challenge before the cycle repeats.
NationPress
1 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Mamata Banerjee allege about CEC Gyanesh Kumar?
Mamata Banerjee alleged at the INDIA bloc's Dilli Chalo rally on 1 November 2026 that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar 'centrally hijacked' the vote-counting process during West Bengal's Assembly polls, effectively 'vanishing' votes. She also claimed over one crore voters were removed from Bengal's electoral rolls before the elections were held.
What is the 'Dilli Chalo' rally and why was it held?
The 'Dilli Chalo' rally was an INDIA bloc gathering held at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi on 1 November 2026, organised to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral irregularities. Opposition parties and civil society groups used the platform to protest what they described as systematic voter disenfranchisement.
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) that Banerjee referred to?
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a process conducted by the Election Commission of India to update electoral rolls. Banerjee and other opposition leaders allege that the SIR was used to selectively remove voters — particularly in opposition-leaning areas of Bengal — ahead of the Assembly polls, a charge the ECI has not publicly addressed in detail.
What did Banerjee say about the BJP and central agencies?
Banerjee accused the BJP-led central government of 'protecting' the CEC and alleged that central agencies were functioning as 'puppets of the BJP'. She urged those agencies to remain impartial. She also accused the BJP government of 'looting' jobs, misappropriating temple offerings, and hijacking Waqf properties — all charges the BJP denies.
What is the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) that Banerjee mentioned?
The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) is a group that staged multiple protests in October 2026 against CEC Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral misconduct. Banerjee expressed solidarity with the CJP at the rally, also thanking students and civil society members for supporting the broader campaign against the Election Commission.
