New Delhi [India], May 15: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday held a key meeting with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal and senior party leaders Raghav Chadha and Saurabh Bhardwaj at Nirvachan Sadan in the national capital.
The discussions were chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, along with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. The meeting is part of an ongoing outreach initiative by the ECI to engage with leaders of national and state political parties.
In a press release, the ECI stated:
“These interactions provide for a long-felt need of constructive discussions which enable National and State Party Presidents to share their suggestions and concerns directly with the Commission.”
The Commission emphasized that the meetings are intended to strengthen the electoral process through inclusive dialogue within the existing legal framework.
This engagement with AAP follows earlier meetings with leaders of other major parties, including:
- Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) President Mayawati on May 6
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President JP Nadda on May 8
- CPI(M) General Secretary MA Baby on May 10
- National People’s Party (NPP) President Conrad Sangma on May 13
To date, the ECI has conducted over 4,700 all-party meetings across the country, including:
- 40 by Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs)
- 800 by District Electoral Officers (DEOs)
- 3,879 by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs)
— engaging more than 28,000 political party representatives.
Additionally, as part of its ongoing reform agenda, the ECI on May 1 introduced three new initiatives aimed at enhancing the accuracy of electoral rolls. It is also redesigning Voter Information Slips to be more user-friendly and informative, aligning with the vision laid out by the CEC during the recent Conference of Chief Electoral Officers.