New Delhi: The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea filed by an NGO challenging the exclusion of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from the panel responsible for selecting the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and election commissioners. The plea argues that the Election Commission should be shielded from political and executive interference to uphold the integrity of democracy. The bench, headed by Justice Sanjiv Khanna, acknowledged the submissions made by lawyer Prashant Bhushan, representing the NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, and scheduled the hearing for March 15.
The NGO's petition challenges the validity of Section 7 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, which excludes the CJI from the selection panel. Under the new law, the selection panel comprises the Prime Minister as the chairperson, with the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Union Minister nominated by the Prime Minister as its members.
The plea comes in the wake of Election Commissioner Arun Goel's resignation. It urges the Union of India to fill the vacant positions of Election Commissioners in accordance with the selection committee laid down by the Supreme Court in the 2023 case of Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India.
The petition underscores that democracy is an essential facet of the Constitution's basic structure and emphasizes the need to insulate the Election Commission from political and executive influence to ensure free and fair elections.
The fresh plea alleges that the recent law passed by Parliament in December 2023, which removed the CJI from the selection panel and restored the executive's authority in appointing election commissioners, undermines the rule of law and threatens democracy.
The composition of the selection committee under the new law, the plea argues, excessively interferes with the appointment process of election commissioners and compromises the independence of the poll panel.
Meanwhile, another plea filed by Madhya Pradesh Congress leader Jaya Thakur seeks to restrain the Centre from appointing new election commissioners as per the 2023 law. Thakur also challenges the provisions of the 2023 law, raising concerns over the integrity of the electoral process.