Hyderabad: In a democratic giant like India, elections must be treated as a sacred ritual that should be performed with utmost devotion towards the democracy but unfortunately, it has been reduced to an occasion for the sacrifice of all democratic values.
The electoral values of the country had fallen to an abysmal level by the time T.N. Seshan had assumed the office of Chief Election Commissioner in the 1990s.
Adequate measures to correct this situation have been lacking all through. As a fallout of this, political considerations have become a norm in the appointment of the Election Commission.
The observations made by the three-member Supreme Court bench while striking down the Goa government’s decision to give to the State’s Law Secretary additional charge as the State Election Commissioner, are invaluable.
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The Supreme Court had on an earlier occasion made it clear that the State Election Commission enjoys the same powers as the Central Election Commission in conducting free and fair elections.
State Election Commissioner plays a crucial role in conducting Panchayat and Municipal elections that are at the lowest strata of democracy.
Evil politics are assailing this system too to erode the sanctity of the State Election's constitutional authority.
In its latest observation, the apex court directed all state election commissioners across the country, who currently hold an additional charge, to step down immediately, stating that a government employee or bureaucrat cannot be appointed as Election Commissioner.
Dr BR Ambedkar, the founding father of India’s Constitution, had desired a special mechanism for the appointment of election commissioners.
All the evils witnessed in the appointments of Election Commissioners today are a result of not paying heed to him.
Erstwhile Chief Election Commissioner of India, Mr MS Gill had said that the recognized political parties should draw a circle around them and stand at the centre of it without wavering to fulfil their constitutional and moral obligations.
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There is no mechanism in the country today to select such morally upright persons to the top position. In this scenario, the sweet will of the political parties is prevailing in the selection process, which is giving scope to appoint their yes-men to the crucial position.
In the year 2017, the Central government had made it clear on the floor of the Parliament that it has no plans to consult the remaining political parties in the appointment of the Central Chief Election Commissioner, nor is it considering any proposal to establish a collegium like arrangement.
The BJP veteran LK Advani had himself said in the year 2012 that since the present selection process of CEC is giving scope to a lot of irregularities, Opposition parties too should be allowed to participate in the appointment process of CAG and CEC.
Similar recommendations were also made by Tandon the CEC in 2006 and Gopala Swamy, the CEC in 2009. In 2015, the Law Commission too had called for the establishment of a collegium comprising of the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition and Chief Justice of India for the appointment of Election Commissioners.
The demand for the elimination of the ruling party’s unilateral decisions in the appointment of ECs is justified by the fact that the appointment process is misused repeatedly.
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In Canada, the Chief Election Commissioner is appointed based on the resolution by the House of Commons. He is therefore accountable only to the Parliament of that country.
The same process is worth emulation in India as well.
If the eroding people’s trust in the electoral process is to be restored, the process of appointing ECs should be reformed. A mechanism that will enable the appointment of independent election commissioners who will abide by their constitutional obligations should be established in the country immediately.
