Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Opposition parties will bring a fresh motion to impeach Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP and spokesperson Derek O’Brien said on Monday.“19 political parties and around 300 MPs had earlier moved an impeachment notice against the CEC. In the coming days, a fresh impeachment notice with additional charges will be brought,” O’Brien told reporters at a press conference in Kolkata.Earlier this month, both Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman, Vice President CP Radhakrishnan, rejected the opposition’s notice seeking the removal of Kumar, who has repeatedly been accused of favouring the ruling BJP.The build-up to the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal—where the TMC has been in power since 2011 and will seek a fourth consecutive term—has been particularly acrimonious, with tensions over issues such as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the Election Commission’s (EC) removal of IAS and IPS officers in the state. As the Model Code of Conduct is currently in force, the EC is currently overseeing the state machinery.The earlier motion to remove Kumar was the first such move against a sitting CEC.152 of West Bengal’s 294 assembly seats will vote on Thursday, while the remaining 142 constituencies will go to polls on April 29. Counting of votes is scheduled for May 4.
‘BJP hatching larger conspiracy ahead of second phase of polls’
Meanwhile, O’Brien further alleged that the BJP, which is the ruling party at the Centre and the principal opposition in the state, is hatching a “larger conspiracy” ahead of the second phase.“We have credible information that a meeting has been called by the home minister with the heads of the CBI, ED and NIA. In the next 100 to 150 hours, some serious or devious action has been planned before the second phase of the polls,” he claimed.The Rajya Sabha member added that such developments were likely in districts of south Bengal.O’Brien also remarked that Union home minister Amit Shah is acting like a “full-time BJP worker.” Shah, the BJP’s chief strategist and a former party president, had earlier said he would spend 15 days in the state.The TMC MP also accused the BJP of deploying “disproportionate force” to defeat chief minister and party supremo Mamata Banerjee.“To defeat a woman, you need 18 cabinet ministers, the prime minister, the home minister, the defence minister, several chief ministers, central agencies, and thousands of security personnel,” he stated.
