2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Apr 8, 2026 12:44 PM IST
TMC Parliamentary Leader in Rajya Sabha Derek O’Brien alleged Wednesday that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar told him to “get lost” during a meeting of his party’s delegation at the Election Commission of India.
On the other hand, EC sources claimed that O’ Brien “shouted at the Election Commission and asked the CEC not to speak”.
O’Brien made the remarks after a Trinamool Congress delegation met the election commissioners at the ECI office in New Delhi. The delegation comprised O’Brien and the party’s Rajya Sabha MPs Sagarika Ghose, Menaka Guruswamy, and Saket Gokhale.
“What the CEC told us within seven minutes of the meeting was ‘get lost’. This is what the CEC told the TMC delegation. We are the second largest Opposition party,” O’Brien said.
O’ Brien also challenged ECI to release the video footage or audio recording of the meeting.
He said he gave examples of six officials posted in West Bengal linked to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and involved in the election process. “It took two-three minutes to give examples and the memorandum. Then, he said get out of here,” said O Brien.
After the meeting, ECI posted on X. “ECI’s Straight-talk to Trinamool Congress… This time, the Elections in West Bengal would surely be: fear-free, violence-free, intimidation-free, inducement-free and without any raid, booth jamming and source jamming.”
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TMC MP Saket Gokhale, who was present at the meeting, replied to the ECI’s post and said: “This is a lie. I was personally present at the meeting. Nothing like this was said. All that CEC Gyanesh Kumar said to us was “GET LOST”. We challenge the ECI to release a transcript of the meeting. Else we will do it.”
Since the SIR began in West Bengal, the poll body and the TMC have been at loggerheads, with senior leaders, including West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee, leading delegations to the ECI.
Most meetings have been acrimonious with TMC and the ECI levelling allegations and counter-allegations.
