Opposition mulls CEC removal ahead of Assembly polls

New Delhi: Looking to step up pressure on the ruling BJP and clear the strains within before Assembly polls in April-May, Opposition is exploring the possibility of submitting a notice seeking removal of Gyanesh Kumar as Chief Election Commissioner over Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

No decision has been taken on moving a notice against Kumar even as the move comes close on the heels of a similar exercise aimed at Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, who the Opposition had alleged was “blatantly partisan” towards Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and other MPs.

In both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, the government is comfortably placed as numbers are stacked against the Opposition. In the midst of Bihar SIR in August last year, the Opposition had indicated that it was planning to submit a notice in Monsoon Session 2025 against Kumar but it did not move forward.

If at all the notice is submitted, it will come up only in the second phase of Budget Session starting March 9. One of the problems the Opposition would be encountering would be that the taking up of the issue needs a 14 day notice and it may come in the midst of election campaigning in poll bound states.

While the Trinamool was keen on moving against Kumar during the first phase of Budget Session with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself making it clear that she would support such an initiative, Congress and other parties went ahead filing a notice seeking Birla’s removal.

The Trinamool did not sign the notice, as it felt that the Congress was pushing its agenda and did not bother to take them on board. It made a qualified support for moving against Birla, insisting that they should have first approached him for withdrawal of suspension of MPs and see his reaction.

Opposition sources said they are now actively considering moving against Kumar just before the elections, as it could send a message to the voters as well as put pressure on the Election Commission not to curry favour to the ruling BJP. It may also help in assuaging the feelings of Trinamool, they said.

With the government facing criticism over India-US trade deal and controversy surrounding Epstein Files as well as the unpublished memoirs of Gen MM Naravane, the Opposition aims to add on more to the narrative against the ruling BJP.

Trinamool Congress has been up in arms against the EC over the SIR in West Bengal and Mamata herself appeared before the Supreme Court to argue the case. Several regional parties are also in favour of taking a strong stand against the CEC.

Sources said Samajwadi Party is also discussing internally about the next course of action once the final electoral roll in Uttar Pradesh is published in April. They point out that there is a gap of around 4.5 crore between the roll prepared for local body polls and SIR draft rolls.

SP sources said if the gap continues to be huge in final rolls after the SIR, they could approach the Supreme Court against it. While the draft SIR rolls have put the voters at around 12.55 crore, the electoral rolls for local body polls in UP was around 17 crore.