New Delhi: The Supreme Court in its order on Friday refused to stay the appointments of new election commissioners (ECs) under a 2023 law that dropped the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from the selection panel.
The apex court’s three-judge bench, headed by Justice Sanjiv Khanna and also comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and A G Masih, told the petitioners, who pointed out that a meeting for the selection of ECs was preponed, to file a separate application pointing out the fact.
The top court, however, agreed to examine the batch of pleas on March 21 and said, “Normally and generally, we do not stay a law by way of an interim order.”
The CEC Act had been challenged before the top court by various petitioners, including that of the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), Congress leaders Dr Jaya Thakur & Sanjay Narayanrao Meshram, Dharmendra Singh Kushwaha, and advocate Gopal Singh.
Although the top court had earlier in its order refused to stay the implementation of the Election Commissioner Act, 2023, it had said it would examine the matter at a later stage, and thereby issued a notice to the Centre and sought the response in April.
The recently passed law allows the appointment to the posts of CEC and Election Commissioners by a Selection Committee comprising the Prime Minister (PM), a Union Cabinet Minister, and the Leader of the Opposition (LOP) in the Lok Sabha. It excludes the CJI in the panel. This forced the petitioners to knock on the doors of the Apex Court seeking appropriate directions.
The PIL (Public Interest Litigation) filed by ADR, challenged the constitutional validity of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023 which stated that the Act allows the Executive to dominate the matter of appointment of Election Commission members, thus, threatening democracy.
It is to be noted that on January 12, a notice was also issued by the apex court on two other PILs raising the same issue. These two petitioners were: Jaya Thakur and Gopal Singh.
Senior Supreme Court lawyer and former Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Vikas Singh, appearing for Madhya Pradesh-based Congress leader, Thakur, today said that when a judgment is passed, there cannot be any transgression.
He contended that there was a clear-cut transgression in the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023.
Responding to Singh, Justice Khanna asked him about the final direction to be issued. Singh replied that the selection panel has to be by a committee of PM, CJI and the LoP.
Singh had earlier submitted to the top court that the new law was against the principle of separation of powers. So, the court should pass appropriate directions and orders in the plea, he said.
Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Sandhu were appointed as election commissioners on Thursday. They were selected by a panel chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The two vacancies in the Election Commission had arisen after the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey on February 14 and the sudden resignation of Arun Goel.
