Chief Election Commissioner assures peaceful and transparent Bihar Assembly elections

KANPUR: The Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, said on Sunday that “The forthcoming Bihar Assembly elections will be held in a completely peaceful, transparent, and unbiased environment.” He made the remarks during his visit to IIT-K on its foundation day and later at a Mathur Vaishya community event at The Sports Hub in Kanpur. Gyanesh Kumar emphasised that “there is no room for violence in elections” and that “the Election Commission of India is committed to maintaining the trust of voters at all costs.” He added that the cleansing of the voter list, which includes over 7 crore voters, had been completed to ensure no fake names remained and no eligible voter was excluded. He said the Commission aimed to make the Bihar polls a model of democracy not only for India but for the entire world. To this end, it was focusing on security arrangements at polling stations, facilities for the disabled and senior citizens, and strict adherence to the code of conduct. At IIT-K, he recalled his student days and noted that the world’s largest voter list purification campaign was conducted in Bihar. He reiterated that no form of violence would be tolerated during the elections. He also described how he had told his mother it was not possible to visit IIT due to the Bihar elections, and how the IIT staff had given up hope of his presence. He honoured his mother’s wish by coming to Kanpur, attended the IIT-K event as a former student on Sunday, and said that being honoured by IIT-K filled him with pride. He called the four years he spent in Kanpur the most energetic and memorable of his life and said he felt fortunate to have the opportunity to return to his community and alma mater.