‘Proved misbehaviour’: Former officials serve impeachment notice against CEC Gyanesh Kumar; delegation lists 6 charges
The delegation accused Gyanesh Kumar of taking decisions in the name of the ECI without adequate consideration by the full commission.
Former civil servants and social activists have filed an impeachment notice against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of "proved misbehaviour" and demanding his removal from office under Article 324(5) of the Constitution. The delegation presented a chargesheet containing six specific allegations against Kumar.
The six charges include:
1. Undermining the collective functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI) by making unilateral decisions without proper consultation or recorded proceedings, particularly in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
2. Unauthorized modifications to Form 6, a document used for including names in electoral rolls, which were implemented despite objections from within the commission.
3. Misuse of ECINET, a technology platform, to circumvent the statutory authority of Electoral Registration Officers responsible for maintaining electoral rolls.
4. Mass disenfranchisement resulting from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, which disproportionately affected vulnerable groups such as women, poor people, migrants, minorities, and the elderly.
5. Conduct that created an appearance of political partisanship, including Kumar's public interventions with opposition leaders and combative political rhetoric.
6. A breach of statutory duty, encompassing the unauthorized changes to electoral forms, circumvention of Electoral Registration Officers, misuse of ECINET, concealment of records, and failure to address known violations.
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