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Government

CEC Appointment: Law Ministry Initiates Panel-Based Selection Process for First Time

This procedure was earlier used for the appointment of Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu in March 2024.

CEC Appointment: Law Ministry Initiates Panel-Based Selection Process for First Time

CEC Rajiv Kumar set to retire on February 18. Image: X/@UpendrraRai

With Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar set to retire on February 18, the Union Law Ministry has constituted a Search Committee to shortlist candidates for his successor, according to sources.

The committee, chaired by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, will identify potential candidates for the role.

The shortlisted names will be reviewed by a Selection Committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a Cabinet Minister, and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi.

For the first time, the process of appointing the CEC will follow the procedure laid out in the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, which mandates selecting the CEC from a panel of five candidates.

This procedure was earlier used for the appointment of Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu in March 2024.

However, the appointment of the CEC under this law is unprecedented, as the senior-most Election Commissioner was traditionally elevated to the position before the Act's enactment.

Reportedly the Law Ministry formed the Search Committee on January 17, comprising the Law Minister, along with the Secretaries of Finance and the Department of Personnel and Training.

The committee is tasked with shortlisting five secretary-level officials, whose names will be forwarded to the Selection Committee. The Act also allows the Selection Committee to consider names beyond this panel if deemed necessary.

While Gyanesh Kumar, the senior-most Election Commissioner, remains a contender for the position, the new legal framework requires the formal process to be adhered to.

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