LoP in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi (L), Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar during a press conference
Credit: PTI Photos
New Delhi: As the Opposition intensified its protest against Special Intensive Revision and alleged vote theft, I.N.D.I.A. bloc was on Monday planning to submit a notice to impeach Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with his press conference a day before acting as a catalyst for the proposed move.
The proposal to move an impeachment notice against the CEC came up during a meeting of I.N.D.I.A. Parliamentary floor leaders chaired by Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and it immediately found acceptance among those attending the deliberations, sources said.
It gained momentum as the leaders started discussing on the floor strategy for the remaining four days of the Monsoon Session and whether to continue to protest on SIR. Floor leaders were of the opinion that Kumar's press conference on Sunday was a "declaration of war against the Opposition", as put by CPI(M) Rajya Sabha floor leader John Brittas, and they should continue with the protest.
At this point, sources said, Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh suggested that an impeachment motion could be moved against the CEC, who had not answered any questions related to the contentious electoral process and sought to attack the Opposition.
While the leaders explored options to carry forward the protest inside Parliament, sources said the option of impeachment gained currency as the only available option left for the Opposition.
The leaders were of the view that the fight against the Election Commission needs to be taken forward, as it has not answered the questions raised in the poll process. Sources said the leaders have "in principle" agreed to the proposal of impeaching the CEC and modalities of submitting the notice will be worked out soon.
A CEC can be removed only through an impeachment process similar to a high court or Supreme Court judge. An Election Commissioner can be removed only on the recommendation of the CEC, according to Article 325(5) of the Constitution.
The CEC on Sunday sought to blame the parties for the inaccuracies in electoral rolls and launched an attack on Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, saying he has no other option but to submit his claims under oath in seven days or his 'vote theft' claims will be considered invalid, or apologise for "baseless" remarks.
"There is a general sentiment among the I.N.D.I.A. parties that an impeachment motion should be given against the CEC. The way in which he held a press conference on Sunday was not like CEC but a BJP politician. He never answered the question raised by the Leader of the Opposition and other parties," Venugopal told reporters.
"You can see his body language. Whenever the media people ask the question also, you can see his body language. He is acting like Modi and Shah. What is the difference between them?" he said.
Asked about the move, Congress Rajya Sabha Whip Syed Naseer Hussain said, "We were expecting yesterday that the EC would answer and address all concerns and questions being raised by the public and would clear doubts and anomalies being pointed out by people. The CEC is talking in the same manner as BJP spokesperson. We need a completely impartial CEC and EC in the country," he said.