"Election Commission Faces Internal Dissent Over Roll Revision"
Special Intensive Revision (SIR)
a nationwide revision of electoral rolls ordered by the ECI under Section 21 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
Article 324
constitutional provision vesting superintendence, direction, and control of elections in the Election Commission of India.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) draws its authority from Article 324 of the Constitution, which vests superintendence, direction, and control of elections in a permanent body. Article 326 separately guarantees universal adult suffrage, making free and fair electoral rolls a constitutional obligation. The Commission has operated as a three-member body since 1989, comprising the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two Election Commissioners (ECs). Decisions are taken collectively, generally by majority vote, under the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991.
The two offices carry different removal protections. The CEC can be removed only through a process similar to removing a Supreme Court judge. An EC, by contrast, can be removed by the President on the CEC's own recommendation. In T.N. Seshan v. Union of India (1995), the Supreme Court clarified that this asymmetry in removal protection does not give the CEC superior decision-making authority. All three commissioners hold equal weight in collective decisions. In Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (2023), the Court directed that appointments must go through a broad-based panel rather than unilateral executive choice. Parliament responded with the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, but replaced the Chief Justice of India in the selection panel with a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister. Critics argue this gives the government two votes out of three and dilutes the independence the judgment intended to protect.
The ECI's authority to prepare and revise electoral rolls flows from the Representation of the People Act, 1950. Its Section 21 allows the ECI to order a special revision of rolls when existing rolls are considered deficient. Historically, this power has been used for specific constituencies facing local problems. A nationwide sweep of the kind now under way, called the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), is an unusual application of this provision and has drawn scrutiny about its legal basis and operational scope.
Disputes over the validity of an election result are handled separately. They go to courts through election petitions under the Representation of the People Act, 1951. This distinction matters because the ECI's own role is confined to preparing rolls and conducting elections. It cannot adjudicate disputes about outcomes. …
Consider the following statements:
1.Union Territories are not represented in the Rajya Sabha.
2.It is within the purview of the Chief Election Commissioner to adjudicate the election disputes.
3.According to the Constitution of India, the Parliament consists of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha only.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Which one of the following suggested that the Governor should be an eminent person from outside the State and should be a detached figure without intense political links or should not have taken part in politics in the recent past?
As per the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, the Selection Committee that recommends appointments to the Election Commission of India comprises the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and:
Consider the following statements regarding the Election Commission of India: 1. The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed only through a process similar to the removal of a Supreme Court judge. 2. The other Election Commissioners can be removed by the President on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner. 3. The Election Commission has functioned as a multi-member body since the commencement of the Constitution in 1950. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
With reference to the right to vote in India, which of the following statements is correct?
With reference to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, consider the following statements: 1. Section 21 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 empowers the Election Commission to order a special revision of electoral rolls. 2. Under the SIR, electors already on the rolls are required to furnish fresh proof of eligibility against decades-old base rolls. 3. The Supreme Court declared the SIR exercise unconstitutional in its ruling. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Match List-I (Case/Judgment) with List-II (its core holding) and select the correct answer using the code given below the lists:
List-I:
A.ADM Jabalpur v. Shivakant Shukla
B.Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India
C.Lal Babu Hussein v. Electoral Registration Officer
List-II:
1.Directed an interim selection committee, including the CJI, for appointing Election Commissioners until Parliament legislated
2.Held that the right to life could be suspended during a proclamation of Emergency
3.Held that a voter's name cannot be deleted from the roll without an individually recorded reason
Want the full note, Prelims Facts & MCQ answers?
Create a free account — takes less than a minute.
Create free account