Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi strongly criticized the process that led to the appointment of Gyanesh Kumar as the new Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). He expressed his dissent over the decision to exclude the Chief Justice of India from the selection committee, calling the move “disrespectful” and “discourteous.”
Gandhi, who is a part of the selection committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, argued that the government’s decision to bypass the Chief Justice violated a Supreme Court order. He contended that this action had raised serious concerns among millions of voters regarding the integrity of India’s electoral process.
In his dissent note, submitted on February 21, the Congress leader wrote, “By violating the Supreme Court order and removing the Chief Justice of India from the committee, the Modi Government has exacerbated the concerns of hundreds of millions of voters over the integrity of our electoral process.” He shared this note on social media platform X.
Gandhi emphasized his responsibility as the Leader of Opposition to hold the government accountable and uphold the ideals of India’s founding leaders, including Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar. He stated, “It is both disrespectful and discourteous for the PM and HM to have made a midnight decision to select the new CEC when the composition of the committee and the process are being challenged in the Supreme Court.”
The appointment of Gyanesh Kumar as CEC follows the retirement of Rajiv Kumar, the previous CEC. Gyanesh Kumar will serve as the senior-most Election Commissioner after Rajiv Kumar’s retirement and hold the position until January 26, 2029.
The central government had earlier formed a search committee to oversee the selection, with the President of India appointing the CEC and Election Commissioners based on the recommendations of the selection committee. The Congress party had previously urged the government to delay the selection process, citing a pending Supreme Court case related to the appointment of the previous CEC.
Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi also criticized the government’s approach, claiming it created a partisan and non-neutral mechanism for selecting Election Commissioners. He accused the government of seeking “control but not credibility,” emphasizing that credibility is the most crucial factor for the Election Commission’s integrity.
