Bhubaneswar: Congress on Tuesday called for a statewide bandh on Oct 8, demanding resignation of chief election commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar amid nationwide political controversy over large-scale deletions of voters during the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.The opposition party also cited the demands for rollback of the amended MMDR Act, 2026, and resignation of state school and mass education minister Nityananda Gond over alleged large-scale errors in school textbooks as key reasons for the ensuing shutdown.The bandh call comes close on heels of a similar statewide shutdown announced by Navnirman Krushak Sangathan, a farmers’ outfit, for Wednesday over textbook errors.“Our Odisha bandh on Oct 8 is primarily aimed at seeking resignations of CEC Gyanesh Kumar over voter-list manipulations and school minister Nityananda Gond over large-scale textbook errors, besides demanding withdrawal of the amended mining law. We have sought the support of all INDIA bloc partners for the bandh,” Congress Odisha president Bhakta Charan Das said on the sidelines of a protest rally organised by INDIA bloc constituents near the assembly here on Tuesday protesting alleged voter-list deletions, MMDR Act and textbook blunders.Referring to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi’s allegations regarding the SIR exercise and electoral rolls, Das said concerns over the functioning and impartiality of Election Commission of India could not be sidelined.The protest rally, held a day after the BJD’s agitation against the MMDR Act amendments, also targeted the BJP govt for allegedly getting the assembly’s monsoon session adjourned sine die on Monday, five days before its scheduled conclusion on Oct 3.“The BJP lacked the courage to face our members in the House on issues relating to the MMDR Act amendments and textbook errors. Our agitation will continue. On Oct 7, we will organise a massive ‘Parivartan Rally’ in Keonjhar district,” Das said.BJP MLA Tankadhar Tripathy dismissed the opposition’s allegations, accusing it of spreading misinformation. “There was no manipulation of electoral rolls. The amendments to the MMDR Act will benefit the state and streamline mining activities and mineral taxation. The govt has already initiated action against those responsible for the textbook errors, and the crime branch probe is underway,” Tripathy said.