To impeach CEC, opposition likely to file notice when Lok Sabha reconvenes

NEW DELHI: The opposition is likely to file for the impeachment of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in Parliament. The move, coinciding with the notice for no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, will further escalate tensions between the ruling camp and the INDIA bloc.Sources said the notice for impeachment will be aimed at the post-recess Budget session that starts in the second week of March. The demand for impeachment of Gyanesh Kumar has been pushed by TMC. The opposition had been staying clear of the demand, until now. As if to get back at the allies, TMC did not sign on the removal notice the INDIA bloc recently moved against Speaker Birla even while pointing out that it was not opposed to the move in principle.The INDIA bloc allies’ sudden push to heed Trinamool’s demand appears aimed at appeasing Mamata Banerjee and reinforcing opposition unity, while also maximising support for the removal notice against Speaker Om Birla when it comes up in March. A senior Congress member said, “It will happen soon. We are discussing the issue”.With a firm majority in both the Houses, Modi govt and BJP are unlikely to be bothered by opposition’s moves.

However, it would be an unprecedented sight that two top constitutional posts would face simultaneous no confidence from opposition.TMC’s demand against CEC Gyanesh Kumar has a wide approval within the opposition camp, with virtually every regional party questioning the process of SIR of poll rolls in the states. Opposition has dubbed it as a BJP ploy to disenfranchise opposition voters to benefit the governing party.

While the issue has been debated at length in SC, its reverberations have also been felt in Parliament.Moving against the Speaker, opposition has accused the LS Chair of acting on behest of the governing party, and not allowing opposition to have its say in House proceedings. The fresh bout of tension between the two camps was sparked by refusal of the Chair to let Rahul Gandhi quote from an unpublished book by former Army chief M M Naravane on the Chinese aggression of 2020. The issue derailed the LS proceedings for over a week.Speaker Om Birla has decided not to officiate till the removal notice is settled.