The Parliament's second leg of the Budget session is set for another upheaval with the Opposition's Trinamool Congress (TMC) reportedly bringing an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, claiming misuse of Constitutional bodies. Sources said a total of 120 members of the INDIA bloc have signed the notice to be moved in the Parliament. These comprise 120 Lok Sabha members and 60 in the Rajya Sabha.
Sources further added that the proposed impeachment motion includes several allegations. The first allegation claims that voters were deprived of their voting rights. The second allegation accuses the CEC of misbehaving toward TMC leaders when their delegation visited the Election Commission headquarters for a meeting on Monday, March 10.
The motion also alleges misuse of constitutional institutions. The Opposition plans to bring the proposal in both houses of Parliament and could submit the notice on March 12 or 13.
If the motion is submitted and accepted, it will mark the first time a Chief Election Commissioner faces impeachment proceedings. In the 1990s, there were discussions about initiating such action against T. N. Seshan, and again in 2006 against Naveen Chawla, but neither move was pursued further.
Why Opposition is targeting CEC Gyanesh Kumar
The development comes amid rising tensions between the TMC and the Election Commission of India over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal ahead of the upcoming assembly elections.
Earlier this week, the TMC wrote to the EC alleging serious irregularities in the revision exercise and claiming that lakhs of eligible voters may have been wrongly removed from the rolls.
In its letter to the apex poll body, the party said the process was marked by procedural violations, technical failures and arbitrary decisions that could undermine the integrity of the electoral process. The party alleged that Electoral Registration Officers' authority was bypassed and that instructions for the revision were communicated informally via messaging platforms rather than through official written directives.
The Trinamool Congress also raised concerns over the scale of voter deletions, claiming that more than 63 lakh names had been removed during the exercise, while over 60 lakh voters remain under adjudication.
Earlier, on February 28, the Election Commission released the final electoral roll following the Special Intensive Revision of voter lists in West Bengal, stating that 5,46,053 voters were deleted using Form 7 after the draft list was published in December 2025.
What the law states on impeaching Chief Election Commission
The procedure for removing the Chief Election Commissioner of India is similar to that for removing a judge of the Supreme Court of India or a high court. Under the law governing the appointment of the CEC and Election Commissioners, the CEC can be removed only on the grounds of proven misbehaviour or incapacity.
A motion for removal may be introduced in either House of Parliament and must be passed by a special majority, a majority of the total membership of the House and a two thirds majority of the members present and voting.
According to the law on the appointment of the CEC and Election Commissioners, the CEC shall not be removed from office except in the same manner and on the same grounds as a judge of the Supreme Court, while other Election Commissioners cannot be removed from office except on the recommendation of the CEC.
