Why the Opposition has adopted a ‘graded response’ against CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar may have failed to allay the Opposition’s many concerns against the Election Commission when he addressed the media on Sunday (August 17), but his replies have triggered some inspired thinking among Opposition parties.

The Opposition’s INDIA bloc and its otherwise estranged ally, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), have decided to adopt a “graded response” when deciding their future course of action against the CEC.

Graded response

At his press conference, Kumar was asked why the poll panel had sought a sworn affidavit from Lok Sabha’s Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi while not seeking the same from BJP MP Anurag Thakur, though both leaders had effectively made similar allegations of rigged electoral rolls.

In response, the CEC justified the apparent double standards by saying that the poll panel was adopting a “graded response”.

Also read: CEC Gyanesh Kumar presser: Barbs for Rahul, answers for none

A day later, Opposition parties, incensed at the “ludicrous claims” made by Kumar, discussed the “option” of moving a notice in Parliament seeking the CEC’s removal from office but stopped shy of doing so on grounds that they must “adopt a graded response” as well.

A hurried presser

Sources told The Federal that a proposal to seek Kumar’s removal, a parliamentary process akin to seeking the removal of an incumbent judge of the Supreme Court, was discussed on Monday (August 18) morning during the meeting of floor leaders of the INDIA bloc, helmed by Rajya Sabha’s LoP Mallikarjun Kharge.

While the Congress, Samajwadi Party, Left parties, and the RJD were in favour of such a move, they decided that the notice should not be submitted in haste and that, as a first step, all like-minded Opposition parties must jointly address the media about their “serious concerns over the conduct of the CEC, in particular, and the Election Commissioner, in general”, a senior INDIA bloc MP present at the meeting told The Federal.

Subsequently, leaders from various Opposition parties agreed to hurriedly convene a press conference at the Constitution Club at 3 pm to fire their first salvo at Kumar.

Also read: EC presser on ‘vote chori’ claims, Bihar SIR: Top things CEC Gyanesh Kumar said

Broad hints

At the press conference, Gaurav Gogoi, the Congress’s deputy leader in Lok Sabha, along with MPs Ramgopal Yadav (Samajwadi Party), Tiruchi Siva (DMK), Manoj Kumar Jha (RJD), Mahua Moitra (Trinamool Congress), John Brittas (CPM), Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena-UBT), and Sanjay Singh (AAP), slammed Kumar for “acting like a spokesperson of the BJP” and asserted that the CEC’s conduct had led to a “definite erosion of faith” in the poll panel’s neutrality.

Broad hints were dropped of the Opposition’s intent to seek Kumar’s removal, with Brittas asserting that the CEC had “forfeited his right to hold office by virtually declaring a war on the Opposition” while Gogoi was a tad more circumspect and said, “All options available to the Opposition, legally and under parliamentary rules, are being considered”.

Joint statement

A joint statement issued by 20 Opposition parties also slammed Kumar for offering no clarification “on why the Bihar SIR was being conducted in such a hasty, ill-prepared, and ad-hoc manner” and for making the “legally infirm demand” from Rahul to place the data unearthed by the Congress regarding alleged “voter fraud” on affidavit.

Also read: Why EC’s ‘vote theft’, SIR explanations ring hollow | Capital Beat

“ECI has completely failed in discharging its constitutional duty of ensuring a free and fair electoral system in the country. It has now become clear that the ECI is not being led by officers who can ensure a level playing field. To the contrary, it is now clear, that those who lead the ECI divert and thwart any attempt at a meaningful inquiry into voter fraud and instead opt to intimidate those who challenge the ruling party. This is a serious indictment,” the joint Opposition statement read.

Lack of consensus

Sources said the Opposition’s decision to refrain from directly seeking Kumar’s removal from office was also, in part, due to a “lack of complete consensus” among all INDIA bloc constituents, as some parties felt that the possibility of such a notice being accepted by the presiding officers of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha was remote anyway.

Besides, the monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to conclude on August 21 and there are already speculations that the government, which has already got a bulk of its listed legislative agenda for the session passed by both Houses amid Opposition’s protests and walk-outs, could even have the session prorogued earlier.

Also read: CEC Gyanesh Kumar defends Bihar SIR; says dead, migrated can't be on voter list

What Opposition can’t do

The process for the removal of a CEC, listed under Article 324 (5) of the Constitution, is similar to the one mandated for removing a Supreme Court judge. It requires a notice to be signed and submitted by at least 100 MPs of the Lok Sabha or 50 MPs of the Rajya Sabha and, if admitted by the presiding officer, the motion is discussed and voted upon in both Houses of Parliament.

While the Opposition does have the numbers to move such a notice in either House, it lacks the bench strength to see it passed, as the minimum required strength for this is a two-thirds majority of members present and voting, as well as a simple majority of the total strength of the House.

What Opposition can do

Sources say the Opposition is aware that any move to seek Kumar’s removal will eventually fail, as they lack the numbers. However, by hinting at their intent for such a move, they wish to send a “strong message” to the CEC and the poll panel against what they consider is “brazenly partisan conduct to favour the BJP in elections”.

Also read: Sounds like BJP spokesperson: Congress hits back at CEC Gyanesh Kumar

If the Opposition does indeed move ahead with formally submitting a notice seeking Kumar’s removal, it would be unprecedented and the government is certain to brand such an initiative as another sign of the Opposition’s lack of faith in the Constitution and constitutional institutions.

The Opposition, however, feels that as a “last resort”, it could take the drastic step “to compel a discussion in Parliament on vote chori (theft)” and record its allegations of “collusion between the EC and the BJP to steal elections”.