Former Officials and Activists Serve Impeachment Notice Against Chief Election Commissioner

A group of former civil servants and social activists submitted an impeachment notice and chargesheet against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Monday, demanding his removal under Article 324(5) of the Constitution for proved misbehaviour.

The Charges

The notice lists six specific charges, accusing Kumar of a sustained pattern of wilful disregard of law and constitutional duty alongside abuse of authority. The delegation claims he took decisions in the name of the Election Commission of India without proper consideration by the full commission, citing reported objections from other commissioners regarding meetings held without proper agendas and minutes. Further charges involve unauthorized changes to Form 6 used for voter enrollment and the deployment of the ECINET system in a manner that reportedly bypassed Electoral Registration Officers.

Voter Impact

The chargesheet describes the Special Intensive Revision as an unprecedented exercise that placed excessive burdens on voters to prove eligibility without proper safeguards. The notice states that 13.3 crore names were deleted from pre-revision rolls and projects a potential gap of 15 crore or more between the adult population and the electorate. Signatories claim these actions disproportionately affected women, poor people, migrants, minorities, and elderly voters, while also creating an apprehension of political partisanship through public interventions and rhetoric.

Context

Article 324 of the Indian Constitution establishes the Election Commission and provides the framework for the appointment and removal of election commissioners. Demands for accountability and formal notices of this nature reflect the intense public scrutiny facing independent constitutional bodies during major electoral roll updates and administrative changes.