Congress backs TMC move to seek impeachment of CEC Gyanesh Kumar

March 11, 2026

New Delhi: The Indian National Congress on Wednesday welcomed the Trinamool Congress proposal to move an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging serious irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal.

TMC announces impeachment move

The reaction came after Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy announced that the party plans to initiate an impeachment motion against the CEC under Article 324 of the Constitution of India, which outlines the powers and functions of the Election Commission of India.

“We will bring an impeachment motion against the CEC as per Article 324 of the Constitution. We have many complaints regarding his functioning,” Roy said.

Congress says step is welcome

Responding to the development, Congress leader Udit Raj said the move was welcome and that the party had been raising similar concerns for a long time.

“It is a welcome step. We have been fighting on this issue for quite some time. In fact, when Rahul Gandhi highlighted how vote deletions occurred in Karnataka and raised concerns about alleged manipulation in voter turnout in Maharashtra and Haryana, the Trinamool Congress did not support us then,” he told IANS.

Udit Raj added that the Congress had also taken out a large protest march against the SIR exercise in Bihar.

Opposition leaders criticise EC functioning

Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat also criticised the functioning of constitutional institutions and alleged that agencies were often used against opposition parties.

“The way the Special Intensive Revision has been conducted in Bihar and West Bengal raises questions,” Bhagat said, alleging that such exercises were being used as political tools.

Independent MP from Purnia, Pappu Yadav, also supported the demand for action against the Chief Election Commissioner.

“Gyanesh Kumar appears to be functioning like a political leader. At present, it seems as though the Election Commission is no longer acting independently. There is a need to bring an impeachment motion against the Chief Election Commissioner,” he said.

BJP hits back at opposition

Reacting to the opposition’s move, BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said opposition parties should focus on contesting elections rather than confronting the Election Commission.

Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar said the opposition currently lacks the numbers to move such a motion and added that the matter is being monitored by the Supreme Court of India.

Opposition MPs are now expected to begin collecting signatures from members of both Houses of Parliament to formally move the motion. According to parliamentary rules, at least 100 MPs from the Lok Sabha and 50 MPs from the Rajya Sabha must sign the notice for it to be considered.

The process for removing the Chief Election Commissioner is similar to the procedure followed for the removal of a judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court and can be done only on the grounds of proven misbehaviour or incapacity.