“What was the use of the meeting?”: Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Raises Concerns Over the Selection of Election Commissioners by the Selection Committee

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Thursday said that bureaucrats Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar have been appointed as new election commissioners by the selection committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Representing the Opposition, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury expressed his dissent over the selection process and raised concerns about the transparency of the selection process claiming that the list of short-listed candidates was not provided to him in advance for review.

“In the current committee, the ruling government already has the majority in the selection team as there are two members representing the government and only one from the Opposition, what was the use of the meeting?” questioned Chowdhury. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury along with Union Home Minister Amit Shah is a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's panel tasked to appoint two Election Commissioners to assist Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar for the upcoming Lok Sabha election.

The senior Congress leader slammed the ruling government, accusing them of conducting the selection process without transparency. He emphasized the importance of including the Chief Justice of India in the panel to ensure fairness. “The government already has a majority. Earlier, they had given me 212 names, but 10 minutes before the appointment they again gave me just six names. I know that the Chief Justice of India is not a part of the panel, the government has made such a law that the CJI doesn't interfere and the Central government can choose to appoint a person of their liking,” said Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.

In March of the previous year, the Supreme Court, in response to a writ petition, outlined guidelines for the appointment of Chief Election Commissioners and other Election Commissioners. According to the court's directive, the President should make these appointments based on the recommendation of a committee consisting of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha the leader of the largest opposition party, and the Chief Justice of India.

However, the enactment of The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, replaced the Chief Justice of India with a Union minister. This move has drawn criticism from many of the Opposition, who view it as an attempt by the government to exert control over the body responsible for overseeing the country's election process.​