Once a constitutional safeguard, the ECI now risks enabling the erosion of India’s democratic norms through partisanship and opacity.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) was set up on January 25, 1950, one day before the country became a Republic. So, historically, the ECI predates the Republic of India, which is an important factoid that many of us do not know.
The poll body was set up under Article 324 of the Constitution, which states that there shall be an Election Commission, which will be responsible for conducting elections to both houses of Parliament, the State Assemblies, and elections to the offices of President and Vice President.
Article 324 vests the Election Commission with plenary powers to do whatever is required for conducting elections. However, the ECI’s powers are circumscribed by two kinds of checks. The first is laws made by Parliament—the Representation of the People Act, 1951; the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, etc. The second is judgements passed by the Supreme Court. In between these two boundaries, the Commission has vast powers and complete freedom of action.
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