Judiciary's role in selection of CEC: A question of balance

Chief Election Commissioner and an election commissioner last month, needless questions are being raised on whether they were the right individuals for these offices because the Chief Justice of India was not on the selection committee. Argument being that the CJI's exclusion has rendered the selection one-sided as the Leader of Opposition is in the obvious minority.

This logic is spurious. Article 324 (2) of the Constitution that outlines the composition and appointment of the CEC and ECs reads as follows:

«The Election Commission shall consist of the chief election commissioner and such number of other election commissioners, if any, as the President may from time to time fix and the appointment of the chief election commissioner and other election commissioners shall, subject to the provisions of any law made in that behalf by Parliament, be made by the President.»

The President has been appointing the CEC and ECs on the advice of the executive, that is the government of the day. Parliament has not enacted any law to amend this process.

The LoP's inclusion in the selection committee for the appointment of any regulatory position started with the Right to Information Act, 2005. Under this law, the President appoints central information commissioners on the recommendation of not the executive but a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, a minister nominated by him and the LoP in the Lok Sabha. In state information commissions, the governor makes the appointment on the recommendation of a committee comprising the chief minister, a minister and the LoP of the state assembly.

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A similar practice was introduced for the appointment of the CBI director, when a selection committee was constituted