Opposition seeks CEC Gyanesh Kumar's removal after dissent report

Opposition parties on Wednesday demanded Parliament initiate impeachment proceedings against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar after a report claimed two Election Commissioners formally objected at least 14 times over ten months to decisions made without their knowledge, calling several "unauthorised and illegal." The report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi flagged issues including centralisation of electoral rolls, restricted access to the ERONet portal, and changes to Form 6 for voter registration. They also questioned appeals against voters already included in rolls and software failures affecting eligible voters. Election Commission sources denied the claims, stating all decisions were unanimous. Congress MP Manish Tewari said the alleged facts suggest an "invisible hand" running the Commission, while Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav called for Supreme Court suo motu cognizance. CPI(M)'s John Brittas alleged "one-man autocracy" and demanded annulment of the electoral roll process. Trinamool Congress's Derek O'Brien noted over 60 Rajya Sabha MPs had already moved to remove the CEC.