EVEN AS internal differences within the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) have come to light, Opposition parties in Maharashtra on Wednesday described it as “dangerous to democracy” and demanded the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.“I am genuinely surprised and shocked. Injustice was done to us; injustice was done to Uddhav Thackeray. Let us put that aside as a political issue. However, if the Constitutional rights of common citizens are being compromised, it is an extremely alarming matter,” NCP (SP) working president and MP Supriya Sule told reporters in New Delhi.Describing it as “dangerous to democracy”, Sule called for an all-party meeting immediately to discuss the issue. “People working within the Election Commission are making these allegations. If this system is collapsing, whom should citizens trust,” she asked.Also Read | CEC must go, Supreme Court should act, pause SIR: Oppostion after Election Commission divide out in openAsked whether CEC Gyanesh Kumar should resign, Sule said the EC should show more moral accountability. “This is not merely a political issue; it concerns the rights of every citizen in the country. Today’s news is shocking for a robust democracy,” she said.Sule said India is the world’s largest democracy, where the Constitution grants equal rights and ‘one person, one vote’ to every citizen — from which the Election Commission was established. “We and Uddhav Thackeray have suffered immensely because of the Election Commission, and undermining that very institution is a sin. This is a deeply concerning issue. The government must immediately hold an all-party meeting to discuss this, as voting is a fundamental right of citizens,” she said.Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray said after the concerns raised by Election Commissioners Vivek Joshi and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take action against the CEC Kumar.Also Read | 14 times in 10 months, two Election Commissioners objected on record to poll panel steps“PM Modi should immediately sack Kumar. All opposition parties need to unite on this issue to ensure Kumar is removed,” he said, while pointing out that the Opposition parties have been raising their voice over the “invalid” and “anti-democratic” acts and decisions of the ECI for the last few years.Story continues below this adShiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sanjay Raut, “What is currently happening in the Election Commission is the biggest game played with the Constitution in the last 80 years. Kumar has acted dishonestly on the directives of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. This is the exact method through which the West Bengal and Bihar Assembly elections were won via the ECI,” Raut claimed.Also Read | Express investigation: Uddhav Thackeray demands CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s arrest, fresh pollsThe Maharashtra Congress said from The Indian Express report, it has become clear that two Election Commissioners repeatedly registered written objections against the decisions of the CEC Kumar. The Supreme Court should take suo motu cognizance and sack the CEC,” said Congress spokesperson Gopal Tiwari.At a time when Constitutional democracy in the country is under threat, the arbitrary conduct, vote theft, and “weakening of the constitutional democratic process” by CEC Kumar have finally been exposed, thanks to two pillars of democracy: administrative officials (the two co-Election Commissioners) and vigilant media,” Tiwari said.