SC to hear on April 16 pleas challenging law on Election Commissioners’ appointment

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would hear on April 16 a batch of petitions challenging the validity of the law relating to the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners, which dropped the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel for Election Commissioners.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), mentioned the matter before a bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh, requesting a hearing. Bhushan urged for a priority hearing of the case to another day as the matter listed today was not likely to be taken up due to the court’s packed schedule.

Bhushan said that the petitioners’ arguments would not take long. The bench then posted the matter for hearing on April 16 and said the court would ensure minimal urgent listings that day so the case could be heard at the start of the court’s proceedings.

In 2024, the apex court declined to put on hold the two Election Commissioners’ appointments under the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023.

The pleas were filed in the apex court seeking a stay on the Act by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Jaya Thakur (General Secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee), Sanjay Narayanrao Meshram, Dharmendra Singh Kushwaha, advocate Gopal Singh. The pleas challenged the Election Commissioners’ law, which dropped the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel for appointing CECs and other Election Commissioners (ECs).

The petitions stated that the provisions of the enactment violate the principle of free and fair elections since they do not provide an “independent mechanism” for appointing the members of the Election Commission of India (ECI).

The petitions said the Act excludes the Chief Justice of India from the process of appointing the members of ECI, which is in violation of the top court’s March 2, 2023 verdict, which had ordered that the appointment of members of the ECI be done on the advice of a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the CJI, and the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha until a law is made by the Parliament.

The petitions said that excluding the CJI from the process would dilute the Supreme Court’s judgement as the Prime Minister and his nominee will always be “the deciding factor” in the appointments.

The petitions, in particular, challenged Sections 7 and 8 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023. The provisions lay down the procedure for the appointment of ECI members.

They sought direction from the Centre to include the Chief Justice of India in the selection committee for the appointment of the CEC and ECs, which currently comprises the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister.

The Act replaced the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991. (ANI)