EC: Selection committee meeting under the chairmanship of PM Modi today, appointment of election commissioners may be approved

The selection committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet on Thursday afternoon to finalize the appointment of election commissioners. Later, based on the recommendation of the selection committee, President Draupadi Murmu will appoint two members to the Election Commission (ECI). Earlier on Wednesday evening, a search committee led by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal met to prepare a panel of five candidates for this, sources said.

The law empowers the three-member selection committee to appoint even a person who has not been selected by the search committee. On February 14, Anup Chandra Pandey retired from the post of Election Commissioner. After this, Arun Goyal also resigned from the post of Election Commissioner. The notification of his resignation was issued on March 9. Since then these two posts in the Commission have been vacant.

With the posts of two election commissioners falling vacant, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajeev Kumar is left as the sole member of the Election Commission. Before the new law on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners came into force, the appointment of Election Commissioners was recommended by the President. As per tradition, the most senior person was appointed the Chief Election Commissioner.

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Earlier there was only Chief Election Commissioner in the Commission

Clause 2 of Article 324 of the Constitution states that 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 determine. The Election Commission earlier had only one Chief Election Commissioner. But at present it consists of the Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.

Two commissioners were appointed for the first time in 1989

Two additional commissioners were first appointed on 16 October 1989. But his tenure lasted till January 1, 1990. Later on October 1, 1993, two additional election commissioners were appointed. The concept of a multi-member Election Commission has been in place since then, in which decisions are taken by majority vote.

Who will be included in the selection committee?

The chairman of the selection committee is Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It has a Union Minister and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chaudhary as its member. Election Commissioners will be appointed by the President. Sources said that the appointment of two new election commissioners can be done on the same day or the next day.

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