Amid a controversy over an “exposé” claiming that decisions were taken without the concurrence of two Election Commissioners, former Election Commissioners said the poll body should immediately disclose details of decisions taken and whether they were unanimous or passed by a majority.
Under the law governing the Commission, its business is meant to be conducted unanimously wherever possible, and if the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and the other Commissioners disagree, the majority prevails. This raises the question whether a decision can be treated as valid if Election Commissioners Mr. Sandhu and Mr. Joshi together oppose it. Quraishi, all decisions are illegal if they are not unanimous or backed by the majority.
Two of the three Election Commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, formally recorded objections at least 14 times over ten months, saying major decisions were being made in the name of the full Election Commission without their knowledge, according to an investigative report by The Indian Express . Former Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa, who resigned following differences within the Commission in 2020, said the ECI should disclose all details, including the dates on which the notes or letters were given and what action was taken on them.
They described several of these decisions as “unauthorised and illegal”. According to former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. “The Election Commission provides complete independence, and if you feel that something wrong is taking place, you can immediately go public,” he said.
