Opposition parties to move impeachment motion notice against CEC Kumar
What's the story
Opposition parties will move an impeachment motion notice against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in both Houses of Parliament, Congress sources told ANI. The party has reached out to opposition parties on the issue. It will be submitted within the next two weeks. They alleged that Kumar has "completely tarnished the dignity of his constitutional office" in the wake of the Indian Express report.
Report
Report by Indian Express details
The damning Indian Express investigation revealed that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected at least 14 times over the past 10 months over decisions taken without their knowledge.
Their objections covered several issues: the addition and deletion of voters in the SIR process, changes to Form 6, access to the electoral database, and the functioning of the commission's own IT systems.
Resignation
Senior opposition leaders held a telephonic discussion
Since the report surfaced, several opposition parties have demanded the resignation of CEC Kumar.
Congress's communications chief Jairam Ramesh said, "The honesty of his intentions, his impartiality, and his ability to function independently have always been highly questionable."
According to the Hindustan Times, senior opposition leaders held a telephonic discussion on Wednesday to devise a joint strategy over the Kumar issue.
Notices
Opposition had already submitted two impeachment notices against Kumar
The opposition had previously filed two impeachment notices against Kumar, on March 12 and April 24. The first notice was rejected by Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, while the second notice is pending.
"There is no doubt that if a special session of Parliament is convened, opposition MPs...will move an impeachment motion to remove him," Ramesh said.
SC
SC advocate seeks contempt action against CEC Gyanesh Kumar
Separately, a Supreme Court advocate has sought the Attorney General for India's consent to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against Kumar.
The advocate, Brajesh Singh, alleges that Kumar willfully disobeyed Supreme Court judgments on the functioning of the ECI.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has given him 48 hours to resign. If he doesn't, the party has threatened to launch nationwide protests.