SC gives tectonic shift to reform within Election Commission
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, March 2: The Supreme Court finally stepped in to stem the rot in the Election Commission for whimsical ways of announcing election dates and for acts which were seen not to be neutral to herald deep-rooted reforms long argued for by experts but ignored by the government. The Supreme Court has by its decision taken away the discretion of the incumbent government to appoint anyone as members of the Election Commission.
A five Judge Bench of the apex court gave its verdict on a bunch of litigations seeking Collegium System kind mechanism for selection of Chief Election Commissioner and other members by decreeing that a panel consisting of the prime minister, leader of the opposition or the largest party in the opposition and the chief justice of India will recommend names to the President. The apex court gave the verdict in the backdrop of the perceived “attacks on institutions” in the country. The opposition parties, predictably, hailed the decision of the Supreme Court, terming it historic.
“The unrelenting abuse of the electoral process over a period of time is the surest way to the grave of democracy,” observed the Supreme Court, while reading out the judgment by the Bench headed by Justice KM Joseph. The apex court also noted that a “person who is in a state of obligation or indebted to who appointed him fails the nation and can have no place in the process of election which forms the very foundation of democracy”.
For a long time, experts had been demanding the Constitutional architecture for the Election Commission to insulate it from the influences of the ruling party at the Centre. The Supreme Court has now mandated Parliament to enact a law to give effect to the spirit of the judgment, which essentially seeks to block the ruling party at the Centre having any shred of influence with the Chief Election Commissioner or the members. It may be recalled that Ashok Lavasa, an Election Commissioner, had resigned in 2020 even while he was in the line to become the Chief Election Commissioner. He was perceived to be not pliable.
Former CEC TN Sheshan also had advocated that the Election Commission should be given a Constitutional validity, and the appointment process should not be left to the discretion of the executive. The Enforcement Directorate Director SK Mishra has got three extensions, which again show that the appointment at such positions is not influenced by merits but for other reasons. The Supreme Court on March 21 will hear a bunch of petitions against the extension given to the ED Director also.
About The Author
