M.A. Baby meets Kejriwal ahead of INDIA bloc meeting on Election Commission

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CPI(M) General Secretary M.A. Baby meets Aam Aadmi Party National Convenor and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at his residence, in New Delhi, on September 27, 2026. Photo: X/@cpimspeak via PTI.

Ahead of the INDIA bloc meeting scheduled for September 30 to discuss the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI), CPI(M) general secretary M.A. Baby met Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi on Sunday (September 27, 2026).

The two leaders discussed the recent report on Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar allegedly ignoring objections raised by an Election Commissioner on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and the Enforcement Directorate’s action against former Keralam Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

The meeting comes days after Mr. Baby wrote to INDIA bloc parties and other non-NDA parties seeking a joint discussion on developments following reports of differences within the poll panel over the SIR exercise. Setting aside three-decade-old differences, Mr. Baby also spoke to the chairperson of Mamata All India Trinamool Congress (MAITC), Mamata Banerjee, who agreed that the situation warranted coordinated action.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Mr. Baby said his primary purpose was to invite Mr. Kejriwal to participate in the Left campaign against the alleged misuse of Central investigative agencies. He underlined that the Enforcement Directorate, which had been used against Mr. Kejriwal and his colleague Manish Sisodia, was now being deployed against former Keralam Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in what he described as a sustained attempt to tarnish his image. The two leaders also discussed the “authoritarian manner” in which Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar was functioning and the need for a united Opposition effort to expose his alleged wrongdoing.

The INDIA bloc meeting scheduled for next week is expected to discuss the functioning of the Election Commission, the SIR exercise, and the Opposition’s course of action, including seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

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