In continuation to the “Vote chori” row, the Opposition is considering moving an impeachment notice against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of “vote chori” (vote theft).
Congress MP Imran Pratapgarhi said, “We will be taking a decision very soon.” However, removing the CEC requires a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament, support which the Opposition does not currently have.
In response, CEC Gyanesh Kumar issued a sharp rebuttal to the allegations made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. CEC described the Opposition’s “PPT presentation” as a “wrong analysis” of voter data. He challenged LoP Rahul Gandhi to either submit a sworn affidavit within seven days or apologize to the nation stating, “There is no third option.”
CEC Kumar emphasized that having duplicate names in voter rolls does not constitute duplicate voting, which is a punishable crime. He said, “When a voter goes to vote and presses the button, he can press it only once, vote theft cannot happen.”
Regarding the contentious Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, CEC stated that the exercise is mandated by the Representation of the People Act. He added that more than seven crore voters in Bihar have already engaged with the revision process, which began on June 24 and is finished by July 20.
This shows earlier SIR efforts, such as a similar exercise conducted in July–August 2003, CEC Kumar said.
At an international forum earlier this year, Kumar also highlighted that electoral rolls have been shared annually with all recognized political parties since 1960, to ensure transparency and fairness.
As of now, the CEC’s office remains firm in defending the integrity of India’s electoral system.