Opposition Moves to Impeach Chief Election Commissioner: Constitutional Safeguards and ECI Independence
Opposition parties are preparing to move an impeachment notice against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, with the motion expected to be submitted after the Budget session begins in March 2026.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee initiated the call for impeachment after her delegation walked out of a meeting with the CEC over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, alleging that the poll panel chief showed arrogance and humiliated them.
Congress leader K C Venugopal confirmed the entire opposition would take a collective decision on the impeachment motion, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav extended support.
The move comes alongside a no-confidence notice already submitted against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, intensifying opposition confrontation with the ruling dispensation on institutional accountability.
The opposition alleges that the SIR exercise unfairly targets West Bengal, with over 58 lakh names removed from electoral rolls, raising concerns about voter disenfranchisement ahead of the 2026 state assembly elections.
Article 324: Election Commission: Composition, Appointment, and Removal
Article 324 of the Constitution vests the superintendence, direction, and control of all elections — to Parliament, state legislatures, and the offices of the President and Vice-President — in the Election Commission of India. The Constitution provides a critical asymmetry in the protection of the CEC versus other Election Commissioners: the CEC can only be removed in the same manner and on the same grounds as a Supreme Court judge, whereas other ECs can be removed only on the recommendation of the CEC.
The opposition's impeachment move invokes this constitutionally demanding procedure, requiring support from at least 100 Lok Sabha MPs or 50 Rajya Sabha MPs to initiate the motion. The high threshold — designed to insulate the CEC from political pressures — makes success unlikely without significant cross-party support, but the move itself raises questions about institutional accountability.
The CEC and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023
This Act was enacted by Parliament following the Supreme Court's landmark judgment in Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (March 2, 2023), where a five-judge Constitution Bench unanimously held that the existing executive-dominated appointment process for ECI members violated the right to equality and free and fair elections. The Court had directed that CEC and ECs be appointed by a committee of the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and the Chief Justice of India — until Parliament enacted a law.
The broader context of the impeachment move reflects opposition concerns that institutional safeguards for ECI independence have been diluted by the 2023 Act. Critics argue that executive dominance in the appointment process, combined with the perceived conduct of the current CEC, undermines the Commission's credibility as a neutral constitutional body.
Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Electoral Rolls
The Special Intensive Revision is a comprehensive exercise undertaken by the Election Commission to ensure that electoral rolls are accurate, up-to-date, and inclusive ahead of major elections. Unlike the routine annual revision (summary revision), the SIR involves house-to-house enumeration by Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to identify additions, deletions, and corrections in voter lists. The ECI ordered SIR in 2025-26 for states with upcoming assembly elections, including West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry.
The SIR is the immediate trigger for the impeachment move. The opposition alleges that the scale of voter deletions amounts to targeted disenfranchisement, and the Supreme Court has been approached to challenge the revision process. The controversy underscores the tension between the ECI's constitutional mandate to maintain clean electoral rolls and the political stakes involved in large-scale voter list changes ahead of elections.
- Article 324(5) protects the CEC with Supreme Court judge-equivalent removal procedure (proved misbehaviour/incapacity, special majority in both Houses)
- Impeachment motion requires: 100 MPs in Lok Sabha or 50 MPs in Rajya Sabha to initiate
- No CEC has ever been removed since 1950
- Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (2023): 5-judge Constitution Bench, unanimous verdict mandating PM-LoP-CJI selection committee
- 2023 Act replaced CJI with a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by PM in the selection committee
- SIR in West Bengal: 58 lakh+ names removed from electoral rolls (draft published December 16, 2025)
- West Bengal Assembly elections due in 2026; SIR final voter list published February 7, 2026
- Election Commission of India established: January 25, 1950; originally a single-member body; multi-member since 1993