Opposition seeks CEC's removal after report of Election Commissioners' SIR objections

Opposition parties are demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar following a report that two fellow commissioners objected to his decisions at least 14 times over ten months. The reported objections involved orders and decisions on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls issued without the knowledge of the other commissioners. Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien called for action on a pending notice signed by over 60 Rajya Sabha MPs seeking the CEC’s removal, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav urged the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance. Other opposition leaders, including Kapil Sibal, Jairam Ramesh, K.C. Venugopal, and Manoj Jha, also demanded that the CEC step down, and the DMK accused the BJP of playing games with the voter-roll revision.

Election Commission sources rejected the reports, maintaining that every decision, including on the SIR, was unanimous and that both commissioners and the CEC approved all orders. The controversy intensifies an ongoing political dispute over the SIR, which opposition figures claim has resulted in large-scale voter deletions.