SC Gives Split Verdict On Whether Pleas Challenging CJI's Exclusion From CEC & EC Panel Should Go To Larger Bench

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday gave split opinions on whether a batch of pleas challenging the validity of a 2023 law that excludes the Chief Justice of India from the panel for selecting the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) should be referred to a larger bench.

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Justice Dipankar Datta, who headed the bench, refused to accept the Centre’s submission that the petitions raise seminal questions of constitutional importance and should be referred to the five-judge Constitution bench.

Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, another judge on the bench, disagreed with the views of Justice Datta.

However, both judges agreed that the matter be placed before CJI Surya Kant on the administrative side for constitution of a bench of appropriate strength for an effective and authoritative adjudication

The bench also requested the CJI to explore the possibility of setting up a permanent five-judge bench for deciding constitutional issues.

The bench was hearing pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, which excludes the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from the selection panel for appointing election commissioners and Chief Election Commissioners.

On March 2, 2023, in a landmark verdict aimed at insulating the appointment of the CEC and ECs from the executive's interference, a five-judge Constitution bench ruled that their appointments will be made by the president on the advice of a committee comprising the prime minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the CJI. 

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