ECI independence
Also called: Election Commission appointments, CEC appointment
The Constitution protects the Chief Election Commissioner from removal except by the process used for a Supreme Court judge, but says nothing about how Commissioners are appointed and gives the other two Commissioners no equivalent protection. For seven decades appointment was purely executive.
In Anoop Baranwal (2023) the Supreme Court filled that silence with a collegium of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and the Chief Justice, expressly until Parliament legislated. Parliament legislated within the year: the CEC and ECs Act, 2023 replaced the Chief Justice with a Union Minister. Appointment, removal protection for all three members, and an independent secretariat remain the unfinished agenda.
Where it sits
- GS-II · Elections, ECI, electoral reforms