The Kerala Legislative Assembly on Monday, 12 October 2026, passed a resolution seeking the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, The Indian Express reported. It is the first state assembly in the country to adopt such a resolution urging the Union government to remove him.
Quick Facts
| Date | Monday, 12 October 2026 |
| Moved by | Chief Minister V D Satheesan |
| House strength | 140 members |
| Ruling alliance | Congress-led alliance, 102 members |
| Left | 35 members, also supported the resolution |
| Outcome | Passed unanimously |
The Three Demands
Satheesan posted that the resolution makes three demands:
- **Restore voting rights:** address irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and restore voting rights of all eligible voters who were wrongly excluded
- **Remove the Chief Election Commissioner:** start proceedings to remove Gyanesh Kumar, whose impartiality the resolution says has come under serious question
- **Reform the selection process:** reconstitute the committee that selects election commissioners so that it includes the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India
“The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy,” Satheesan wrote. “Keralam stands firmly for free and fair elections.”
Why It Matters
The vote comes during nationwide protests against the Chief Election Commissioner over the SIR. A resolution of a state assembly is a political statement; the removal of the CEC is a matter for the Union government and Parliament, and the resolution urges the Centre to act.
Featured image: The Kerala Legislative Assembly (Niyamasabha) building in Thiruvananthapuram (file photo). Photo by sabu-mampallil-kottayam, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.