Amidst a lot of controversy and discussions, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and both the Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi were seen together. It was told that all three sat together and drank tea and had a light conversation after a long time.
Election Commission: Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi held a meeting at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi on September 26 amid questions raised over alleged differences within the Election Commission. This meeting took place at a time when recently there were reports of objections of both the Election Commissioners regarding the functioning of the Commission, Special Intensive Revision of Voter List i.e. SIR and some administrative decisions. After the meeting, the Commission also issued clarifications on several issues and called for more discussion and review on digital and other important initiatives in the future.
In the last few days, public discussion regarding the decision-making process within the Commission had intensified. Media reports had claimed that Sandhu and Joshi had raised questions on several decisions and orders during the last 10 months. On the other hand, sources close to the Election Commission had said that all formal decisions, including the SIR, were taken with the approval of the three commissioners and the decisions were taken unanimously. The Commission had also clarified that the two Commissioners did raise concerns on certain procedural and technical aspects, but this should not be seen as disagreement on the final decisions.
What did the meeting of the three commissioners indicate?
Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi were present along with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in the meeting of 26 September. According to available reports, several pending and controversial issues related to the Election Commission were discussed in the meeting. The Commission also made public information regarding decisions and procedures on subjects like Form 6, access to voter database and monitoring of IT systems.
The reports also revealed that in the future, there may be more emphasis on the system of deliberations and scrutiny regarding new digital initiatives and sensitive administrative decisions. This indicates that greater importance will be given to coordination and documented discussion in the decision-making process within the Commission.
Commission’s emphasis on consensus
An important part of the explanation given by the Commission was that the decisions were taken unanimously. Amidst the discussions that arose regarding SIR, it was clarified that the decisions related to the revision of the voter list had the approval of all three commissioners. However, the process of placing questions or suggestions among officials on various administrative and technical subjects may continue.
Meanwhile, another clarification from the Election Commission said that the letter sent by Sandhu and Joshi to the Cabinet Secretary was not related to any policy or IT system of the Commission. According to the Commission, the letter was on a matter related to the functioning of a senior election officer.
Case of notice to 33 lakh voters in Delhi
The issue of giving notices to more than 33 lakh voters during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Delhi is also in discussion. These notices have been issued in cases related to discrepancies and verification in voter details. According to election officials, receipt of the notice in itself is not a final decision on deletion of names from the voter list and the voters concerned have been given an opportunity to respond with the necessary documents.
The Supreme Court also raised questions regarding this process and said that in some cases the process of issuing notices appears “mechanical” at first glance. The court has sought a response from the Election Commission on possible measures to further improve the process.