New Delhi: Opposition parties are weighing a coordinated move to launch impeachment proceedings against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with Congress saying on Wednesday that a collective decision will be taken soon, a day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee called for his removal.
Speaking to reporters in the Parliament complex, Congress general secretary K C Venugopal said the proposal is under “positive” consideration. “The Trinamool Congress has already contacted the Congress. I think the entire Opposition will take a call on the matter, which is one of the most relevant issues raised by the Trinamool. We are positively looking at it,” he said.
Banerjee, who was in New Delhi campaigning against the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal, had on Tuesday urged other opposition parties to back an impeachment motion against the CEC. On Wednesday, she appeared before the Supreme Court to argue her petition against the SIR exercise, alleging that West Bengal was being unfairly targeted and that citizens were being bulldozed.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, whose party has 37 MPs and is the second largest in the Lok Sabha, backed Banerjee. “Mamata Banerjee has donned a black coat against the black deeds of the BJP,” he said, adding, “Losing your vote is losing your right… your citizenship would be questioned. We are with honourable Mamata Banerjee.”
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi declined to comment, saying, “I am not commenting on that.”
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi accused the BJP of misusing the SIR through the Election Commission to delete voters’ names on a large scale, particularly those who traditionally support Trinamool in West Bengal. She welcomed Banerjee’s Supreme Court petition and said that if the Election Commission abandons institutional morality, it is “completely wrong.” She expressed hope that the court would act to protect the poll body’s credibility and voters’ rights.
Banerjee’s remarks followed a walkout from a meeting with Kumar and other commissioners, where she alleged arrogance and humiliation. At a subsequent press conference, flanked by people she said were affected by SIR, she claimed those being removed from rolls were Trinamool supporters.
Under the law, the CEC can be removed only for proven misbehaviour or incapacity, through a motion in either House of Parliament passed by a majority of total members and two-thirds of those present and voting.