New Delhi: A political storm erupted in Parliament on Thursday as the Opposition moved a statutory resolution seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The resolution accused the Election Commission of India (ECI) of turning a blind eye to large-scale “vote theft” during the recent Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly elections.
Leading the charge, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and other INDIA bloc leaders have alleged systematic rigging through bogus voting, EVM manipulation, and deliberate slowing down of polling in Opposition strongholds. “Democracy is being murdered,” Kharge thundered, claiming the EC has lost all credibility under the Modi government’s influence.
The resolution, filed under Article 324(5) of the Constitution, needs support from both Houses and Presidential approval – a near-impossible threshold given the NDA’s majority. Yet, the dramatic move has put CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the two Election Commissioners in the dock barely months after their controversial appointment. This was through a panel dominated by the ruling dispensation.
The EC swiftly rejected the charges as “baseless and motivated”, asserting that elections were conducted fairly with record turnout and no major complaints during polling. Sources say the Commission is preparing a point-by-point rebuttal.
As both sides dig in, the episode has reignited the bitter debate over electoral integrity and institutional independence, threatening to overshadow the Winter Session.