Polity & Governance GS 2 In the news 11 times

Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India (2023)

The Original Selection Committee Mandate

In Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India, decided on 2 March 2023, a five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court held that, in the absence of a parliamentary law under Article 324(2), the CEC and ECs would be appointed by the President on the advice of a three-member committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (or the leader of the largest opposition party where no recognised LoP exists), and the Chief Justice of India. This arrangement was directed to operate only "until a law is made by Parliament."

Key details

Decided by a five-judge bench (Justices K.M. Joseph, Ajay Rastogi, Aniruddha Bose, Hrishikesh Roy and C.T. Ravikumar).
The Court held that Article 324's silence on the appointment mechanism, left entirely to executive discretion for over seven decades, was constitutionally untenable and undermined the Election Commission's independence.
The interim committee (PM, CJI, LoP) was explicitly a stop-gap arrangement pending parliamentary legislation, not a permanent constitutional mandate.

In the news

● Tracked since April 19, 2026 · last seen September 23, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes

23 Sep '26

Supreme Court Split Verdict Refers CEC/EC Appointment Law to Larger Bench