The Election Commission of India intended to reiterate to the government its pending proposal that the terms of removal of the two Election Commissioners be made the same as those of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), said Navin B. Chawla, CEC, on Monday.
In his address at the third convocation of Tata-Dhan Academy here in which he presented certificates to those who had passed Post-Graduate Diploma in Development Management, the CEC said, “Though appointed by the Government, once appointed, the CEC cannot be removed without a cumbersome impeachment procedure. Nor can the terms of the office be modified to the disadvantage of the incumbent.”
(Later, talking to reporters, he said that there was no need to increase the number of Election Commissioners, saying that “three is ideal.” The EC, he said, was unique as all the commissioners enjoyed equal powers. The CEC was similar to the chairman of a board of directors and the EC was working in “complete harmony.”)
In his talk on ‘Electoral democracy in India,' Mr. Chawla said that the 2009 general elections were generally hailed as a “thoroughly successful election both by the victor and the vanquished.” Starting from ensuring the fidelity of the electoral rolls, which were the fundamental prerequisite for a free and fair election, the EC had been introducing new practices and infusing technology into the electoral process. The use of voter identity cards also contributed to the 2009 general elections being hailed with a sense of general satisfaction.
The merit of the Indian electoral system was not sought to be built solely on numbers but on the value attached to each vote. The EC also put in place new initiatives like the booth-level officer system, which provided grass root accountability for maintenance of purity of the poll, vulnerability mapping that identified villages that were vulnerable to intimidation overt or silent and use of communication systems.
Keywords: Election Commission
