INDIA Bloc Backs Fresh Impeachment Move Against CEC Gyanesh Kumar: Reports

Congress is spearheading a fresh impeachment move against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with INDIA bloc parties now on board. A notice is being drafted and could be submitted to Parliament as early as next week, ANI reported, citing Congress sources on Thursday.

The move comes after The Indian Express published an investigation on September 23, reporting that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had filed formal objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period against decisions and orders of the Election Commission, including those related to the revision of electoral rolls.

The report has triggered a fresh political confrontation over the functioning of the Election Commission and the nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The Opposition has cited the reported objections as fresh grounds for action against Kumar. The Election Commission, however, has rejected suggestions that there were divisions within the poll panel or that Sandhu and Joshi formally dissented from decisions of the full Commission.

The poll body has maintained that all its decisions over the past year, including those related to SIR, were unanimous.

Earlier Impeachment Bid

This would not be the first attempt to seek Kumar’s removal. On April 24, 73 Opposition MPs in the Rajya Sabha filed a notice seeking his removal from office on grounds of alleged “proven misbehaviour”. The Congress had said at the time that the notice contained nine specific charges.

The Opposition had made a similar attempt on March 12, but the notice was rejected by the Rajya Sabha chairman. Congress sources and Opposition leaders have said that notice remains pending. The bloc is now preparing a fresh notice that will incorporate the latest revelations.

The April notice had 73 signatories, but Opposition sources told NDTV that seven of those MPs have since switched sides. They said this had made a fresh move necessary, taking into account the current numbers in the House and the new allegations.

The latest effort also follows an earlier attempt in March in both Houses of Parliament seeking Kumar’s removal. Those notices were rejected on April 6 by the Rajya Sabha chairman and the Lok Sabha Speaker.

The process for removing a Chief Election Commissioner is the same as that for removing a Supreme Court judge. It requires the requisite number of MPs to initiate the motion, followed by an inquiry if the motion is admitted, and a special majority in Parliament for removal.