Opposition Seeks CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s Removal, Fresh Polls In Bihar & West Bengal Over EC Row

Opposition parties escalated their attack on the Election Commission on Wednesday, seeking Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s removal, a probe into the poll panel’s functioning and, in some cases, fresh elections. The latest push centres on the special intensive revision of electoral rolls and allegations of irregularities in voter-list changes.

The demands ranged from a wider investigation into the EC’s conduct to calls for fresh polls in Bihar and West Bengal. RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav led that line at a press conference on Wednesday, alleging that electoral-roll revisions and changes in election procedures had weakened the Opposition’s ability to challenge results.

Rahul Gandhi also attacked the EC, while DMK chief MK Stalin, Mamata Banerjee and Akhilesh Yadav cited reported objections by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi to question the poll panel’s impartiality and internal functioning.

Tejashwi’s Allegations

Tejashwi sharpened the charge. Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, the RJD leader accused the EC of being used to help the BJP and demanded fresh elections in Bihar and Bengal along with Gyanesh Kumar’s removal. “Whether it is the results in Bihar or Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana, or Bengal the opposition has not lost. Rather, in these states, the EC has been misused to ensure that the BJP wins,” he said.

He also alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah had “flouted all the rules” and that the CEC had acted according to their wishes. “And this process is still continuing. It is going on in several states, and it is being carried out arbitrarily. There are objections from two Election Commissioners as well. Even then, neither Modi ji nor Amit Shah ji is coming forward and saying anything about it,” he said.

Tejashwi questioned changes to record-retention rules as well. He said the period for retaining voting and counting records had been cut from up to one year to 45 days. “That means, when there is no evidence left, what can the opposition do? When they go to court, there will be no evidence, so there will be no benefit,” he said.

He also raised the issue of the CEC selection process. Tejashwi said the earlier panel had included the Chief Justice of India, while a Union minister is now part of it. “This means that, as Modi ji wishes, one Gyanesh ji may be removed, but the BJP can bring in another Gyanesh Kumar,” he said. He also alleged that elections in Bihar and Bengal had been illegal and demanded fresh polls in both states.

Rahul And Stalin

Rahul Gandhi also attacked the EC. The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha called alleged “vote chori” a crime against voters and the Constitution. “Vote chori is a crime against the Indian people and a direct attack on our constitution. The BJP, RSS and EC who organised it have committed an act of treason. Justice will be served,” he said.

Stalin, the DMK supremo and former Tamil Nadu chief minister, demanded Gyanesh Kumar’s removal and linked his criticism to the special intensive revision of electoral rolls. He said the DMK and other Opposition parties had opposed the deletion of crores of voters under the SIR process. “The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, along with other Opposition parties, has consistently opposed the move to delete crores of voters from the electoral rolls in the name of the Special Intensive Revision (#SIR). Rushed through just months ahead of elections in State after State, the exercise was riddled with irregularities and sparked widespread unrest, particularly in West Bengal.”

Referring to a report by the Indian Express, Stalin said reported objections by Sandhu and Joshi had raised questions about the functioning of the three-member poll panel. He claimed the two commissioners had been kept unaware of key decisions and that their objections had been brushed aside on 14 occasions in 10 months. “Gyanesh Kumar had been acting unilaterally and in secrecy, without the concurrence of the other two Election Commissioners. Even more alarming is the revelation that Thiru. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Thiru.” Stalin said.

He then argued that differences inside the EC could not be dismissed as routine procedure. “Where the Commissioners differ in opinion on any matter, the decision must be based on the majority view. If two of its three members were themselves kept unaware of what was being done in the Commission’s name, this cannot be dismissed as a mere internal or procedural matter. It constitutes a grave assault on Indian democracy,” he said.

Stalin also questioned electoral-roll appeals filed even after courts had directed that certain voters be added to the rolls. He asked who had authorised and filed those appeals. He said the DMK had earlier moved an impeachment motion against Gyanesh Kumar and demanded that he step down, and called for a fair and thorough investigation into the functioning of the Election Commission. “Gyanesh Kumar must go immediately. The SIR exercise must be halted,” Stalin said.

Mamata And Akhilesh

Mamata Banerjee called the report “scandalous”. The former West Bengal chief minister reacted to the reported objections by the two commissioners on decisions linked to the SIR process and demanded action against Gyanesh Kumar. “This is such a scandalous story. We had never seen this in our lives. This election commissioner must be arrested. He has no moral authority to continue, and BJP must see that they cannot destroy our Constitution. They cannot demolish democracy,” she said.

Mamata also alleged that BJP-linked people had been deployed in the electoral-roll process and accused the CEC of misusing the police. “They cannot depute their own EROs in the name of BJP IT Team. What we said earlier has now been exposed,” she said. She added: “Gyanesh Kumar has misused Police and with BJP they have deputed their own BJP-minded people. Such a scandal has never happened. If you have any honour, you yourself would ask to be arrested. You should be arrested.”

Akhilesh Yadav also questioned the poll panel’s functioning at a press conference in Lucknow. He referred to reports that Sandhu and Joshi had recorded objections 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders on SIR and electoral-roll procedures. “This is dangerous for our democracy. This is an attempt to weaken our democracy,” he said.

Akhilesh said elections conducted during a period when the EC was allegedly not acting impartially could not be treated as fair. “This means that the governments which have been formed during this period are unconstitutional governments,” he said. In an earlier post on X, he described the reported objections as “extremely serious news” and urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance.

He also alleged that Samajwadi Party voters had been systematically removed from electoral rolls and that no action followed complaints to the EC. “Samajwadi Party voters were systematically deleted from the Election Commission's voters list. We brought this to the notice of the Election Commission, but no action was taken against anyone. Rampant malpractice was committed on a massive scale in the by-elections,” he said.

EC Rejects Claims

The Election Commission rejected the suggestion that decisions had been taken without all three commissioners participating.

The poll panel stated that decisions, including those linked to SIR, were taken unanimously with the approval of the CEC and the two other election commissioners. It added that written notes, observations, technical suggestions and internal checks were standard practices in a multi-member constitutional body.

The EC further stated that differing views were part of institutional deliberations before final decisions were taken. It added that all official orders had legal sanction and followed established procedure.