Unbiased EC need of hour, not a pliant one

The Bill introduced in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday laying down new norms for the appointment of members of the Election Commission of India is bound to raise grave apprehensions among parties other than the ruling one.

The replacement of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) with a member of the central cabinet seems designed to give greater leeway to the executive arm of the Union Government than it received within the procedure established by the Supreme Government.

The Opposition’s suspicion that the altered procedure would undermine the autonomy of the Commission is not misplaced.

The Bill—Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, conditions of Service and Terms of Office) bill, 2023—is being moved in pursuance of the Supreme Court ruling in the Anoop Baranwal versus Union of India (2023) wherein the apex court had directed that a committee be constituted to makes these appointments.

The new Bill which replaces the 1991 Act, proposes the constitution of a “search committee” which will be chaired by the Prime Minister and will have Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet minister “to be nominated by the Prime Minister” as members.

The fivejudge constitution bench headed by Justice K. M. Joseph had directed that the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) shall be appointed on the advice of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Chief Justice of India.

It had further specified that where no Leader of the Opposition is available, the committee will include the leader of the largest Opposition party in Lok Sabha in terms of numerical strength.

The signals emanating from the exclusion of the Chief Justice of India and his replacement by a minister of the central cabinet—essentially a loyalist of the ruling party—carries ominous forebodings for the independence of the Commission vested with the task of conducting the elections in free and fair manner.

Existence and survival of democratic process being predicated on the fairness of the election, the crucially vital link between the independence of the Election Commission and the pursuit of power, its consolidation and its exercise must be credible enough to impart legitimacy to the electoral process.

By replacing the CJI, the current dispensation is strongly suspected to be seeking his replacement with a ‘yes man’ to tilt the selection in favour of the political executive.

It will be rather difficult to resist temptation of selecting pliant individuals for the position by a committee heavily tilted in favour of the executive and the ruling dispensation.

The timing of the Bill prior to the retirement of the current incumbent Anup Chandra on February 14 next year, just before the announcement of the General Election would be due, reinforces the suspicion that the move is aimed at having individuals beholden to the powers-that-be.