History Of Internal Faultlines Within The Election Commission
· India · Times of India, Zee News
Internal friction within the Election Commission has been a recurring phenomenon since the body transitioned to a multi-member structure in 1989. Early tensions surfaced between then-CEC R V S Peri Sastri and election commissioners S S Dhanoa and V S Seigell, leading to a brief reversion to a single-member body in 1990. In 1995, the Supreme Court ruled that the CEC and election commissioners hold equal status, following a legal challenge by T N Seshan regarding his authority over fellow commissioners M S Gill and G V G Krishnamurthy. Further public disagreements occurred between 2006 and 2009, when CEC N Gopalaswami recommended the removal of election commissioner Navin Chawla. More recently, internal differences between CEC Sunil Arora and election commissioner Ashok Lavasa were reported during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, preceding Lavasa's resignation in 2020.
Why it matters
Understanding these historical precedents provides context for current institutional disputes, showing that internal disagreements within the commission are not unprecedented.
Read the original report — Times of India
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