New Delhi, March 13: Opposition MPs have submitted notices in both Houses of Parliament seeking a motion for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, sources said on Friday.
According to a source, 130 Lok Sabha MPs and 63 Rajya Sabha MPs have signed the notice.
The signatories include members from all the INDIA bloc parties, including the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is no longer formally a part of the opposition alliance, the source said.
Some Independent MPs have also signed the notice while several others have evinced interest in joining the initiative, the source added.
This is the first time a notice has been moved seeking the removal of the CEC.
According to sources, the notice lists seven charges against Kumar, including alleged “partisan and discriminatory conduct in office”, “deliberate obstruction of investigation of electoral fraud” and “mass disenfranchisement”.
The opposition parties have accused the CEC of aiding the ruling BJP on several occasions, especially with the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which they alleged aims to help the saffron party at the Centre.
The process for removing the CEC is similar to that for the removal of a Supreme Court or a high court judge, meaning an impeachment can be effected only on the ground of “proven misbehaviour or incapacity”.
In a blogpost published on Friday, TMC Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien said the term “proved misbehaviour” has been interpreted to include deliberate abuse of powers, partisan exercise of constitutional functions favouring one political formation over others and actions that undermine public confidence in the independence and impartiality of the CEC, amongst other attributes.
He pointed out that in the last 75 years, India has had 25 CECs and “neither House of Parliament has ever brought a removal motion against the CEC”.
Calling submitting the notices in both Houses a “strong messaging”, O’Brien said members of the opposition are using “every constitutional tool available to protect the sanctity of India’s glorious institutions”.
“However, if the notice is not taken up by the Union government, doubts will be raised about a tacit understanding between the executive and the CEC,” he said. (PTI)
