West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday demanded Assembly elections in the state using the pre-Special Intensive Revision (SIR) voter list. Her demand followed a media report claiming Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections to aspects of the voter-roll revision exercise. Banerjee demanded the arrest of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and announced pan-India protests against him. She alleged that the BJP and Election Commission had benefited from the process. TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee alleged that 30 lakh names were deleted from Bengal’s voter rolls. The Election Commission said SIR decisions were taken unanimously. 

A report has raised questions over 16.10 lakh appeals filed against West Bengal voters whose names were retained after the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. According to an Indian Express investigation, Election Commissioner Sukhbir Singh Sandhu questioned who authorised and filed the appeals on behalf of the Election Commission. He said neither he, Election Commissioner Vivek Joshi nor the Bengal Chief Electoral Officer was informed. The report also highlighted concerns over access to the ECI’s voter software. The Election Commission said differing views are part of normal deliberations and stressed that its final decisions, including those linked to SIR, were unanimous. (PC: India Today)

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has taken its “School Thik Karo” campaign to Odisha. CJP co-convenor Saurav Das visited three government schools in Bhubaneswar. He raised concerns over poor hygiene and damaged buildings. Das also demanded the resignation of Education Minister Nityananda Gond over errors in school textbooks. Around 1,678 factual, printing and typing errors were found in books for Classes I to VIII. The Odisha government suspended four officials and started action against six others. It has also begun distributing corrected textbooks. Student groups continue to protest and plan to surround the Odisha Assembly over the issue.  

Indian-origin politician Nila Vikhe Patil has been elected to Sweden's Parliament from the Stockholm City constituency. The 41-year-old Green Party member is the daughter of Maharashtra educationist Ashok Vikhe Patil and the niece of state minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil. Born in Sweden, she spent her early childhood in Ahmednagar. Sweden's left-leaning opposition won a narrow majority in the September 13 election, taking 176 of the 349 seats. Nila said she wants to be a voice for those who cannot vote and to work for a liveable planet and a good future for every child. (PC: India Today)

Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke has demanded the resignation of Maharashtra Public Service Commission chairman Vivek Bhimanwar. Dipke made the demand during a meeting with MPSC aspirants in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. He called for reforms in the commission and urged students to raise their concerns on social media. The demand comes amid protests over an alleged Drug Inspector exam paper leak and other recruitment issues. Bhimanwar has rejected calls for his resignation, saying the paper leak happened before he took charge. Dipke also criticised Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over unemployment and urged the government to address the concerns of MPSC aspirants.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, BJP veteran L K Advani and Election Commissioner S S Sandhu are among prominent names listed for notices during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Delhi, according to a News18 report. Sandhu received a notice over a spelling mismatch in his name in electoral records. Jaishankar and his wife K S Jaishankar also figure in the list. Advani, his daughter Pratibha and daughter-in-law Geetika were reportedly issued notices because their names could not be mapped with the 2002 electoral records. Congress leaders Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri are also on the list. (PC: X)

BJP leaders criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after comedian Pulkit Mani performed an act mimicking Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a student event in Indore. The performance took place during the Congress programme ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ on Saturday, where Gandhi was present on stage. BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan accused Gandhi of promoting an “uncouth culture” and questioned his response to the act. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju also criticised the Congress over the incident. The BJP’s remarks led to a political controversy. The event focused on student concerns, including education, recruitment and unemployment. Congress leaders have not indicated that Gandhi endorsed the comedian’s remarks. (PC: India Today)

A political controversy erupted after comedian Pulkit Mani mimicked Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Chhatron Ki Goonj’ event in Indore on September 19. The performance imitated Modi’s speaking style, references to foreign leaders and a coin trick, while also including a remark about his late mother. Gandhi was seen laughing during the act. The BJP strongly criticised the incident, alleging that the performance mocked Modi’s interaction with an elderly woman and made an inappropriate reference to his mother. BJP leaders, including Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami and Union Minister Prahlad Joshi, condemned the episode. (PC: HT)

Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal and four family members have received notices from the Delhi Election Commission during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. The notices were issued under the “Unmapped with Last SIR” category, according to information available as part of the exercise. Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal, father Gobind Ram Kejriwal, mother Gita Devi and 25-year-old son Pulkit Kejriwal also received notices under the same category. The five family members are among 110 people served notices in a specific part segment of Assembly Constituency 40, which covers the New Delhi constituency. The article provides no further details about the reasons for the notices or subsequent verification process.

Rabiul Alam Chowdhury, the candidate chosen by Mamata Banerjee’s faction of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the Rejinagar Assembly bypoll in West Bengal, withdrew his nomination on September 19. His decision came a day after the faction’s Nandigram candidate, Sanchita Pradhan Dey, also withdrew from the contest. Chowdhury said he discussed the decision with Mamata Banerjee and cited the ongoing dispute over the TMC’s name and election symbol, along with alleged intimidation of party workers. The Election Commission has temporarily frozen the TMC’s traditional name and symbol, assigning new names and symbols to the rival factions ahead of the October 6 bypolls. (PC: India Today)