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Election Commission of India (ECI): A Comprehensive Overview

1. Constitutional Basis, Composition, and Appointment

• Constitutional Provision: Established under Article 324 of the Indian Constitution.
• Composition:
  • Consists of a Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs).
  • Originally a single-member body, it was made a multi-member body on October 16, 1989.
  • It has been a permanent multi-member body since October 1, 1993, typically comprising the CEC and two ECs.
• Appointment: The President of India appoints the CEC and other ECs.

2. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC)

• Tenure: 6 years or until attaining the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• Salary & Status:
  • Salary is equal to that of a Judge of the Supreme Court.
  • Status in the order of precedence is unique (ranked 9A) and not equivalent to the Chief Justice of India, a Governor, or a Speaker.
• Removal: Can only be removed from office in the same manner and on the same grounds as a Judge of the Supreme Court.
  • This requires a Presidential order following a resolution passed by a special majority in both Houses of Parliament.

3. Election Commissioners (ECs)

• Powers & Salary: Enjoy powers and salaries equal to the CEC.
• Removal: An Election Commissioner can be removed by the President on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner.
• Tenure: Typically 6 years or until the age of 65.

4. Functions and Jurisdiction

• Responsible For: Supervising, directing, and controlling the entire process for elections to:
  • Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha)
  • State Legislatures (Legislative Assemblies and Councils)
  • The President and Vice-President of India.
• Key Functions Include:
  • Directing and controlling the preparation of electoral rolls.
  • Deciding the election schedule for general and bye-elections.
  • Allocating election symbols to political parties and candidates.
  • Resolving disputes relating to splits/mergers of recognized political parties.
• What the ECI Does NOT Do:
  • It does not conduct elections for the Speaker of the Lok Sabha or the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha (internal house elections).
  • It does not issue the final election notification (done by the President/Governor).
  • It does not decide on election disputes (role of the Supreme Court/High Courts).
  • It does not make provisions for elections to legislature (role of Parliament).
  • It does not recommend President’s Rule in a state.
  • It does not conduct elections to local bodies (Panchayats and Municipalities); this is the role of the State Election Commission.

5. Electoral Systems in India

• First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) System: Used for direct elections to the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies based on adult suffrage.
• Proportional Representation (PR):
  • System Used: Proportional Representation by a Single Transferable Vote (PR-STV).
  • Used For: Indirect elections of the President, Vice-President, Rajya Sabha, and State Legislative Councils.
  • Objective: To ensure fair and adequate representation for all groups, particularly minorities.
  • It is considered unnecessary in a country with a developed two-party system.

6. Key Personnel and History

• First CEC: Sukumar Sen (served from 1950 to 1958).
• First Woman CEC: V.S. Ramadevi (1990).
• Other Notable Past Members: Dr. M.S. Gill, T.S. Krishnamurti, and J.M. Lyngdoh.
• Note: N.B. Lohani was not a member of the ECI.
• National Voters’ Day: Celebrated on January 25 every year since 2011 (marks the ECI’s foundation day).

Related Electoral Processes and Laws

1. Disqualification of Members of Parliament

• Authority for Decision: The President of India decides on any question regarding the disqualification of an MP (Article 103).
• ECI’s Role: The President must obtain the opinion of the ECI and is bound to act according to it.
• Grounds for Disqualification: A person convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more is disqualified from contesting elections. The disqualification lasts for a period of six years after release (Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951).

2. Right to Vote and Eligibility

• Nature of the Right: The Right to Vote and the Right to be Elected are Legal Rights granted by statute, not Fundamental Rights.
• Voting Age: Reduced from 21 years to 18 years by the 61st Constitutional Amendment Act of 1988 (effective March 28, 1989). Youths aged 18 first voted in the 1989 Lok Sabha General Elections.

3. Election Machinery and Reforms

• State Election Commission (SEC):
  • A constitutional authority established by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments (1992).
  • Conducts elections to rural and urban local bodies.
• Delimitation Commission:
  • Appointed to redraw constituency boundaries.
  • Its orders cannot be challenged in any court.
  • When laid before Parliament or a State Legislature, no modifications can be made.
• Model Code of Conduct (MCC):
  • A set of voluntary guidelines issued by the ECI for political parties and candidates.
  • Comes into effect immediately after the election schedule is announced.
  • It was not enacted by Parliament.

4. Election Terminology and Statistics

• Exit Poll: A post-election survey of voters.
• Opinion Poll: A pre-election survey.
• Security Deposit: A candidate must submit a deposit to contest.
  • It is forfeited if the candidate fails to secure more than one-sixth of the total votes polled.
• Electoral Reforms (Dinesh Goswami Committee, 1989):
  • Led to the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 1996.
  • Key recommendations: government funding of elections, increased security deposit, death of a candidate no longer cancels an election, and a candidate can contest from a maximum of two constituencies.
• Election Statistics: In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the total number of registered voters was 714 million.

Know More About the Election Commission:

• Election Commission – Old Year Questions
• Election Commission One Liner Questions & Answer