Congress MP Shashi Tharoor targeted CEC Gyanesh Kumar, stating legal statutory immunity does not shield constitutional bodies from judicial review or accountability.
Published: October 13, 2026, 6:30 PM IST
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Congress MP Shashi Tharoor vs Gyanesh Kumar (PTI)
New Delhi: In a significant development, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has said the Opposition is preparing articles of impeachment against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh KumarUrging him to resign over alleged flaws in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Congress leader he did not enjoy any Constitutional protection and said that the Opposition is working on articles of impeachment and will pursue his removal if he does not resign.
“First of all, he (Gyanesh Kumar) doesn’t have constitutional protectionHe has legal protection from a law passed by this BJP government towards the end of 2023 that grants him immunity,” he said, referring to an under-challenge section of the CEC Act 2023 that grants lifetime immunity from any civil or criminal proceedings to election commissioners.
Tharoor alleged the legislation was passed during Parliament’s Winter Session after the entire Opposition had been expelled from the House.
“The Constitution does provide for impeachmentThe Opposition is working on articles of impeachment,” he said.
Opposition MPs reiterate ‘democracy in danger’ as they arrive for high tea with Rahul
The high tea huddle at the Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi’s residence, being attended by several MPs of Congress and other opposition parties, is set to chart out the next course of demonstration and protests against the Election Commission’s ‘arbitrary and flawed’ SIR exerciseFrom Chief Ministers to noted Parliamentarians, all headed to Rahul’s residence in the capital while reiterating that democracy was in danger and the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) must step down to restore the sanctity of the institution.
A couple of them, when asked about INDIA bloc’s future mobilisation, said that they don’t have any information and the LoP will brief them at the meetingThis comes a day after Rahul and Mallikarjun Kharge spearheaded a protest march to the Supreme Court’s doorstep against the CEC’s alleged high-handedness.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, “The road is hard, but we are willing to travel that roadWe want reformation in the Election Commission, and we particularly want the Chief Election Commissioner to resign.” Samajwadi MP Awadhesh Prasad, arriving for the tea-meet, said, “Democracy is in danger, and the Constitution drafted by Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar is under threatThe Election Commission and the government are determined to take away the voting rights granted by Babasaheb.”
