- INDIA Bloc to hold 'public impeachment' of CEC.
- Event targets Gyanesh Kumar over voter list issues.
- Symbolic protest precedes November 1 mega rally.
PuThe Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) Bloc will hold the “public impeachment” of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on Saturday (October 31, 2026), following its postponement on Friday owing to rains in New Delhi. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said that the event will start between 3:30 PM and 4:00 PM in the lawns of the official residence of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge at 10, Rajaji Marg, in the capital.
Ex-Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar is likely to chair the event, Mallikarjun Kharge will move the motion, and LOP Rahul Gandhi will deliver the concluding remarks. Chalo Dilli march and mega rally at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan on November 1, 2026. Addressing a press conference in Delhi on Friday, Congress leader Gandhi claimed that the programme will be held on Saturday, adding that all protestors will unite into one demanding the removal of Gyanesh Kumar. The Leader of Opposition stated that the programme was postponed due to the continuous rain. Apart from this, Gandhi also confirmed that the Ramlila Maidan rally will be held on November 1 as per the schedule.
"As we said before, this is not multiple protests. This is one protest. The entire opposition is standing here. Anybody who wants to protest, any person, is welcome to come here. We are all standing together because we are defending the Constitution. We are defending the idea of India. We are defending the vote, which is the expression of all Indians," Gandhi told reporters.
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Can CEC be removed by public impeachment?
No. A symbolic proceeding conducted by political parties cannot remove the Chief Election Commissioner.A "public impeachment" (also referred to by the opposition as Jan Mahabhiyog or a "People's Impeachment") is a symbolic political protest and public hearing structured to mimic formal parliamentary trial proceedings. It is not a legally binding constitutional process and carries no official authority to remove an official from office.
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Under Article 324(5) of the Indian Constitution, a Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) can only be removed from office through a rigorous, formal impeachment process passed by both houses of Parliament with a special two-thirds majority, numbers which the current opposition does not have. The opposition is holding a public, simulated trial to present its "evidence" directly to the citizens and the media, as a formal impeachment has not yet been granted by the authorities.
The event was earlier conceived as a "Mock Parliament", where politicians would play the roles of both the treasury and opposition benches. However, the format was changed to a "Public Impeachment" to ensure the event focused entirely on the specific allegations against the individual and avoided any imagery that could be viewed as mocking or insulting Parliament as a formal institution.
The SIR Row
Over the past few weeks, the INDIA bloc and the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) have held massive protests over the issue in the heart of the national capital.
The INDIA bloc has accused the Election Commission of failing to address concerns about alleged voter-list irregularities and disenfranchisement linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.These accusations remain political allegations and should not be treated as established findings against the CEC.Saturday’s programme is expected to resemble parliamentary proceedings, although it will have no statutory standing.