The Supreme Court on Wednesday raised concerns over the process of appointing the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners, questioning the absence of an independent member in the selection panel.
A bench headed by Justice Dipankar Datta referred to the selection process for the CBI Director, where the Chief Justice of India (CJI) is part of the committee. The bench asked why a similar independent presence was not included in the panel for appointing election commissioners.
“We are not saying the CJI must be on the panel. But why should there not be an independent member? Why should the third member come from the government itself?” the bench observed, while also raising concerns about the possibility of the Prime Minister influencing appointments.
Under the current system, the selection committee for appointing the CEC and Election Commissioners consists of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (or the leader of the largest opposition party), and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister.
Questioning the balance within the panel, the court noted that if the Prime Minister and the opposition leader support different candidates, the Cabinet Minister would likely back the government’s choice.
Responding to the court’s remarks, Attorney General R. Venkataramani said, “I do not want to speculate on that.
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