says it would affect the Election Commission’s neutrality and calls it an attempt at diluting a Constitution Bench order
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The opposition parties on Friday slammed government move to exclude the Chief Justice of India (CJI)’s from the panel to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs).
Congress party cited veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani’s 2012 letter to then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for appointments to Constitutional bodies on a bipartisan basis.
In a controversial move, the Union Government on Thursday introduced a Bill removing the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from a three-member panel to select the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners. Instead of the CJI, the three-member panel, when formed, would consist of a Cabinet Minister besides the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, and the Prime Minister, who would head it.
The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023, was introduced by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal in the Rajya Sabha amid din over protests on Manipur.
In March, the Supreme Court had ruled that the selection panel should comprise the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha and the CJI. The court had said the order would hold good until a law was made by Parliament.
Till this SC ruling, Election Commissioners and CECs had been appointed by the President after recommendations from the government.
The Opposition was quick to point out that this would put a question mark on the neutrality of the Election Commission (EC) as the selection panel would effectively have two members of the BJP — the Prime Minister and the Cabinet Minister.
The EC would see a vacancy in February next year when Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey demits office, possibly days before the dates for the 2024 general election are announced.
According to the Statement and Objectives of the Bill, in case there is no LoP in the Lower House of Parliament, the leader of the single-largest Opposition party would be considered the LoP.
At first, a list of five persons would be prepared for the selection committee’s consideration for appointment as the CEC and Election Commissioners.
The Opposition seized the opportunity and accused the government of diluting a Constitution Bench order.
Congress general secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal hit out at the government over the Bill, calling it a “blatant attempt at making the Election Commission a total puppet” in the hands of the Prime Minister.
“What about the Supreme Court’s existing ruling which requires an impartial panel? Why does the prime minister feel the need to appoint a biased Election Commissioner? This is an unconstitutional, arbitrary and unfair Bill – we will oppose this on every forum,” Mr. Venugopal said on X (formerly Twitter).
CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury too posted on X: “Modi govt seems to ape Israel’s extreme right wing govt’s efforts to make Judiciary subservient. Constitution of India mandates an impartial Election Commission to conduct ‘free and fair’ elections. This move destroys ECs impartiality.”
Communist Party of India condemns the move by Union government to replace the Chief Justice of India from selection committee to appoint Chief Election Commissioner. The CPI is of the view that this is a brazen attack on democratic functioning of the Election Commission and on its independence as
guaranteed by the Constitution.
In a tweet, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh cited Advani’s reference to “a rapidly growing opinion” that appointments to Constitutional bodies such as the Election Commission of India (ECI) should be done on a bipartisan basis “to remove any impression of bias or lack of transparency and fairness.”
Ramesh wrote these were not the comments of a critic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi but an excerpt from the second paragraph of Advani’s letter to Singh available on the BJP’s website.
Advani proposed a committee comprising the CJI and leaders of the Opposition from both Houses of Parliament to select the CEC and the ECs.