Oppn files notices in both Houses for removal of CEC | India News
.
NEW DELHI: The Joint Opposition on Friday petitioned Parliament for the removal of Gyanesh Kumar as Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), a major move that escalated the anti-BJP camp’s protests against the nationwide SIR and the conduct of elections that will widen its already fraught rift with the NDA.The removal notice comes just before the EC announced the schedule for assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry, where India’s major bloc members are pitted against each other. BJPAlso as against each other.
Opposition MPs submitted impeachment notices to both houses of Parliament, with 130 Lok Sabha members and 63 Rajya Sabha members signing the petitions. The notices include not only Bharat Bloc parties but also some independent MPs and AAP who are continuing their fight against the EC with serious allegations about the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the Electoral Roll in Delhi. AAP walked out of the bloc after the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.Sources in India Bloc said the petitions contain seven allegations against Kumar, mainly “prejudicial and discriminatory conduct in office”, “deliberate obstruction of inquiry into electoral fraud”, “massive disenfranchisement of voters” and “misconduct”. The opposition has also raised the issue of the CEC’s partial treatment of SIR and a political party conducted for the 2025 Bihar elections and upcoming elections in states like West Bengal, they said.Opposition accuses EC of helping BJP through SIR Removal notice of CEC a TMC In the initiative, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made the demand during the budget session on February 1. The move came after Mamata led several days of protests in Kolkata.The process for removing a CEC is similar to that of a Supreme Court judge – the incumbent can only be removed “on the basis of proven misconduct or incapacity”. According to the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, once a motion to remove a judge is received in the LS or RS, the Speaker or the Chairman will constitute a three-member panel to inquire into the grounds. Once it submits its report, it will be tabled in the House and debate will follow. The motion must be passed by a majority of the total number of members in both houses and two-thirds of the parliamentarians present and voting. With the NDA having a majority in LOS and RS, it makes the opposition’s move a non-starter.There was a practice in LS and RS that ensured early submission of notices. The TMC did not sign the removal notice against Speaker Om Birla which was supported by other opposition parties, but it supported the notice after coming to the LS this week after an understanding within the Bharat bloc to jointly sponsor the notice against the CEC.
