The Evening Wrap: Centre defends decision to remove CJI from ECs selection panel

The Centre on Wednesday defended in the Supreme Court the appointment of two new election commissioners (ECs) under a 2023 law that excludes the Chief Justice of India from the selection committee, saying the independence of the Election Commission does not arise from the presence of a judicial member on the committee, PTI reported. In an affidavit filed in the apex court, the Union Law Ministry rejected the petitioner’s claim that the two election commissioners were hastily appointed on March 14 to “pre-empt” the orders of the top court the next day, when the matters challenging the 2023 law were listed for hearing on interim relief. The affidavit has been filed in response to a batch of pleas, including those by Congress leader Jaya Thakur and the Association for Democratic Reforms, challenging the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023. “It is submitted that the case of the petitioners is premised on one fundamental fallacy that the independence can only be maintained in any authority when the selection committee is of a particular formulation. It must be noted that the independence of the Election commission, or any other organisation or authority, does not arise from and is not attributable to the presence of a judicial member in the selection committee,” the affidavit said. Refuting the petitioners’ claim that no list of probable appointees was shared with the opposition, the Centre submitted that the names of short-listed persons were made available to Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on March 13, 2024, after the Search Committee had finalised six names for recommendation. ”It is, therefore, wholly wrong, misleading and malicious to suggest that the third member of the Selection Committee was given the shortlisted names as an act of premeditation on the mind of the two members of the Executive as all the members received the list simultaneously. Furthermore, the list of dates clearly brings out the fact that profiles of all eligible persons were shared with the leader of the single largest opposition party in the Lok Saba on March 13, 2024. “It may be noted that the persons finally appointed were from the list so shared. This belies the claim of the petitioners that no list was shared in advance of the meeting,” the affidavit said. The Centre contended that a political controversy has been sought to be created only on the basis of “bare, unsupported and pernicious” statements about certain vague and unspecified motives behind the appointment. Supreme Court agrees to list PIL against practice of parties promising freebies during polls The Supreme Court agreed to list for hearing on Thursday, March 21, a PIL against the practice of political parties promising freebies during elections, a significant development that comes ahead of general elections beginning April 19. The PIL also seeks a direction to the Election Commission to invoke its powers to freeze the election symbols and cancel the registration of such political parties. “This is important. We will keep this on board tomorrow,” the bench, comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said on Wednesday. The apex court took note of the submissions of senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, appearing for lawyer and PIL petitioner Ashwini Upadhyay, that the plea needs to be heard before the Lok Sabha polls. The plea said there should be a total ban on populist measures to gain undue political favour from voters as they violate the Constitution, and the EC should take suitable deterrent measures. It also urged the court to declare that the promise of irrational freebies from public funds before elections unduly influences the voters, disturbs the level playing field and vitiates the purity of the poll process. “Petitioner submits that the recent trend of political parties to influence voters by offering freebies with an eye on elections is not only the greatest threat to the survival of democratic values but also injures the spirit of the Constitution,” said the plea. “This unethical practice is just like giving bribes to the electorate at the cost of the exchequer to stay in power and must be avoided to preserve democratic principles and practices,” it said. The petition sought a direction to the EC to insert an additional condition in the relevant paragraphs of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order 1968, which deals with conditions for recognition as a state party, that a “political party shall not promise/distribute irrational freebies from the public fund before the election”. The petitioner has urged the apex court to declare that the promise or distribution of private goods or services, which are not for public purposes from public funds, before the elections violates several articles of the Constitution, including Article 14. There are eight recognised national political parties and 56 state-level recognised parties. The total number of registered unrecognised political parties in the country is around 2,800. The seven-phase elections for the 18th Lok Sabha will begin on April 19 and end on June 1. The votes will be counted on June 4. Centre notifies fact check unit under PIB The fact check unit under the Press Information Bureau has been notified as the fact check unit for the Central Government, according to an official notification issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on March 20. The fact check unit has been notified under IT Rules of 2021. “The central government hereby notifies the Fact Check Unit under the Press Information Bureau of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting as the fact check unit of the Central Government for the purposes of the said sub-clause, in respect of any business of the Central Government,” the notification said. Social media platforms who do not take down fake news notified by the fact check unit will lose safe harbour from legal liability for such articles. ECI seeks immediate action against Shobha Karandlaje for alleged model code violation The Election Commission has directed the Karnataka chief electoral officer to take immediate and appropriate action on the DMK’s complaint about alleged model code violation by Union minister and BJP leader Shobha Karandlaje. The poll panel also sought a compliance report on the matter within 48 hours. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has sought action against Karandlaje for alleging that a person from Tamil Nadu was responsible for the IED blast at The Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru on March 1. In its complaint to the Election Commission of India earlier today, the DMK said that the minister’s statement generalised the people of Tamil Nadu as “extremists”. During a protest in Bengaluru on March 19, she had said that “law and order in Karnataka has deteriorated. People who come from Tamil Nadu plant bombs here, people from Delhi chant ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans and people who come from Kerala were involved in acid attacks.” She later apologised for her remarks and said she was retracting her comments. The Madurai police has booked her for “promoting enmity” between different groups, while her remarks had drawn sharp criticism from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and other DMK leaders. Delhi using full might to defeat us like in 1977 elections, says Omar Abdullah Former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said New Delhi was using its full might to defeat his party while drawing parallels with the 1977 elections in the erstwhile State. Terming the current political scenario similar to that of 1977, National Conference Vice President Abdullah said, “In 1977 too, the Janata Party was joined by local parties and religious leaders to defeat us. The results are before us. Let the A team and the B team (of the BJP) join hands. We are prepared for this test. We are ready for the elections.” Abdullah accused New Delhi of “using its full might to defeat the NC” in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. “Every time it is a tough game. In the last elections, militancy was used against us to sideline NC. None of the elections are easy. I contested elections in 1998-99 amid boycott calls (by separatists and militants),” Abdullah said. He said his party was hopeful that the people will wholeheartedly support them. Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev undergoes emergency brain surgery Spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev underwent an emergency brain surgery at a private hospital in New Delhi, a statement from the hospital said on March 20. The surgery was carried out on March 17 to remove bleeding in the skull. Sadhguru was weaned off the ventilator post-surgery, the statement from Indraprastha Apollo Hospital said, adding he has shown “steady progress and his brain, body and vital parameters have improved”. The 66-year-old spiritual guru is the founder of the Isha Foundation and has launched campaigns like ‘Save Soil’ and ‘Rally for Rivers’ for environment conservation. He had been suffering from severe headaches for the last four weeks. Despite the severity of the pain, he continued with his normal daily schedule and social activities and even conducted the Maha Shivaratri function on March 8, the statement said. The headache worsened by March 15, when he consulted Dr. Vinit Suri, the hospital’s senior consultant neurologist, over phone, it said. Suri immediately suspected a subdural haematoma and advised an urgent MRI, it added. The spiritual leader underwent a brain MRI on the same day, and it revealed massive bleeding in the skull. “There was evidence of a chronic bleed of three to four weeks duration as well as fresh bleeding that had occurred within a duration of 24 to 48 hours,” the statement said. Sadhguru was advised immediate hospitalisation and appropriate medication schedule adjustment, but he had important meetings and events scheduled for March 15 and March 16, it said, adding he completed the meetings with the support of pain medication. On March 17, he developed a decline in his level of consciousness, and weakness in the left leg, and was admitted to the medical facility under the care of Dr. Suri. The CT scan revealed a marked increase in brain swelling and a decision was taken to operate, it said. Sadhguru was managed by a team of doctors comprising Dr. Vinit Suri, Dr. Pranav Kumar, Dr. Sudheer Tyagi and Dr. S. Chatterjee and underwent an emergency brain surgery on March 17 to remove the bleeding in the skull, the statement said. Baloch militants attack Pakistan’s Gwadar Port; 8 terrorists killed Eight gunmen who attacked Pakistan’s Gwadar port on on March 20 have been killed, Sarfraz Bugti, the chief minister of Balochistan province, where the port is located, has said. In a post on X, he said, “Eight terrorists tried to attack the Gwadar Port Authority complex today. All of them have been neutralised by security forces.” Media reports say that militants entered the Gwadar Port Authority Complex and opened fire while multiple explosions were also reported in the area. Security forces foiled the attack and killed the eight attackers, the Express Tribune newspaper reported, citing sources. The attackers were neutralised while trying to gain entry into the port complex, it said. Majeed Brigade of the proscribed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed responsibility for the attack, the report said. Balochistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is home to a long-running violent insurgency. Baloch insurgent groups have previously carried out several attacks targeting the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects. Thousands of Chinese personnel are working in Pakistan on a number of projects being carried out under the aegis of the CPEC. The separatist BLA is opposed to China’s investments in Balochistan and accuses China and Pakistan of exploitation of the resource-rich province. The attack comes on a day when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asserted that his government will not tolerate any acts of cross-border terrorism. According to an annual security report issued by the Centre for Research and Security Studies, a think tank, Pakistan witnessed 1,524 violence-related fatalities and 1,463 injuries from 789 terror attacks and counter-terror operations in 2023 — marking a six-year high record. Meanwhile, the country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asserted that his government will not tolerate any acts of cross-border terrorism. In Brief The BJP on March 20 suffered a major setback in Jharkhand as BJP MLA from Mandu seat Jai Prakash Bhai Patel joined the Indian National Congress (INC) ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In the presence of AICC in-charge of Jharkhand Alam Gir Alam, Jharkhand Congress chief Rajesh Thakur, Jharkhand Minister Alamgir Alam and party’s media and publicity department head Pawan Khera, Patel said that BJP’s ideologies didn’t align with his father Tek Lal Mahto’s. Praising Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Nyay Jodo Yatra, he expressed confidence that the INDIA alliance will win all the 14 seats in the Jharkhand Lok Sabha elections. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 20 March 2024 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Centre defends dropping CJI from selection panel, says EC’s independence doesn’t stem from judicial member’s presence The [Centre on Wednesday defended in the Supreme Court the appointment of two new election commissioners]( (ECs) under a 2023 law that excludes the Chief Justice of India from the selection committee, saying the independence of the Election Commission does not arise from the presence of a judicial member on the committee, PTI reported. In an affidavit filed in the apex court, the Union Law Ministry rejected the petitioner’s claim that the two election commissioners were hastily appointed on March 14 to “pre-empt” the orders of the top court the next day, when the matters challenging the 2023 law were listed for hearing on interim relief. The affidavit has been filed in response to a batch of pleas, including those by Congress leader Jaya Thakur and the Association for Democratic Reforms, challenging the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023. “It is submitted that the case of the petitioners is premised on one fundamental fallacy that the independence can only be maintained in any authority when the selection committee is of a particular formulation. It must be noted that the independence of the Election commission, or any other organisation or authority, does not arise from and is not attributable to the presence of a judicial member in the selection committee,” the affidavit said. Refuting the petitioners’ claim that no list of probable appointees was shared with the opposition, the Centre submitted that the names of short-listed persons were made available to Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on March 13, 2024, after the Search Committee had finalised six names for recommendation. ”It is, therefore, wholly wrong, misleading and malicious to suggest that the third member of the Selection Committee was given the shortlisted names as an act of premeditation on the mind of the two members of the Executive as all the members received the list simultaneously. Furthermore, the list of dates clearly brings out the fact that profiles of all eligible persons were shared with the leader of the single largest opposition party in the Lok Saba on March 13, 2024. “It may be noted that the persons finally appointed were from the list so shared. This belies the claim of the petitioners that no list was shared in advance of the meeting,” the affidavit said. The Centre contended that a political controversy has been sought to be created only on the basis of “bare, unsupported and pernicious” statements about certain vague and unspecified motives behind the appointment. Supreme Court agrees to list PIL against practice of parties promising freebies during polls The [Supreme Court agreed to list for hearing on Thursday, March 21, a PIL against the practice of political parties promising freebies during elections]( a significant development that comes ahead of general elections beginning April 19. The PIL also seeks a direction to the Election Commission to invoke its powers to freeze the election symbols and cancel the registration of such political parties. “This is important. We will keep this on board tomorrow,” the bench, comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said on Wednesday. The apex court took note of the submissions of senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, appearing for lawyer and PIL petitioner Ashwini Upadhyay, that the plea needs to be heard before the Lok Sabha polls. The plea said there should be a total ban on populist measures to gain undue political favour from voters as they violate the Constitution, and the EC should take suitable deterrent measures. It also urged the court to declare that the promise of irrational freebies from public funds before elections unduly influences the voters, disturbs the level playing field and vitiates the purity of the poll process. “Petitioner submits that the recent trend of political parties to influence voters by offering freebies with an eye on elections is not only the greatest threat to the survival of democratic values but also injures the spirit of the Constitution,” said the plea. “This unethical practice is just like giving bribes to the electorate at the cost of the exchequer to stay in power and must be avoided to preserve democratic principles and practices,” it said. The petition sought a direction to the EC to insert an additional condition in the relevant paragraphs of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order 1968, which deals with conditions for recognition as a state party, that a “political party shall not promise/distribute irrational freebies from the public fund before the election”. The petitioner has urged the apex court to declare that the promise or distribution of private goods or services, which are not for public purposes from public funds, before the elections violates several articles of the Constitution, including Article 14. There are eight recognised national political parties and 56 state-level recognised parties. The total number of registered unrecognised political parties in the country is around 2,800. The seven-phase elections for the 18th Lok Sabha will begin on April 19 and end on June 1. The votes will be counted on June 4. Centre notifies fact check unit under PIB The [fact check unit under the Press Information Bureau has been notified as the fact check unit for the Central Government]( according to an official notification issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on March 20. The fact check unit has been notified under IT Rules of 2021. “The central government hereby notifies the Fact Check Unit under the Press Information Bureau of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting as the fact check unit of the Central Government for the purposes of the said sub-clause, in respect of any business of the Central Government,” the notification said. Social media platforms who do not take down fake news notified by the fact check unit will lose safe harbour from legal liability for such articles. ECI seeks immediate action against Shobha Karandlaje for alleged model code violation [The Election Commission has directed the Karnataka chief electoral officer to take immediate and appropriate action on the DMK’s complaint about alleged model code violation by Union minister and BJP leader Shobha Karandlaje.]( The poll panel also sought a compliance report on the matter within 48 hours. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has sought action against Karandlaje for alleging that a person from Tamil Nadu was responsible for the IED blast at The Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru on March 1. In its complaint to the Election Commission of India earlier today, the DMK said that the minister’s statement generalised the people of Tamil Nadu as “extremists”. During a protest in Bengaluru on March 19, she had said that “law and order in Karnataka has deteriorated. People who come from Tamil Nadu plant bombs here, people from Delhi chant ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans and people who come from Kerala were involved in acid attacks.” She later apologised for her remarks and said she was retracting her comments. The Madurai police has booked her for “promoting enmity” between different groups, while her remarks had drawn sharp criticism from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and other DMK leaders. Delhi using full might to defeat us like in 1977 elections, says Omar Abdullah [Former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said New Delhi was using its full might to defeat his party while drawing parallels with the 1977 elections in the erstwhile State](. Terming the current political scenario similar to that of 1977, National Conference Vice President Abdullah said, “In 1977 too, the Janata Party was joined by local parties and religious leaders to defeat us. The results are before us. Let the A team and the B team (of the BJP) join hands. We are prepared for this test. We are ready for the elections.” Abdullah accused New Delhi of “using its full might to defeat the NC” in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. “Every time it is a tough game. In the last elections, militancy was used against us to sideline NC. None of the elections are easy. I contested elections in 1998-99 amid boycott calls (by separatists and militants),” Abdullah said. He said his party was hopeful that the people will wholeheartedly support them. Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev undergoes emergency brain surgery Spiritual leader [Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev underwent an emergency brain surgery]( at a private hospital in New Delhi, a statement from the hospital said on March 20. The surgery was carried out on March 17 to remove bleeding in the skull. Sadhguru was weaned off the ventilator post-surgery, the statement from Indraprastha Apollo Hospital said, adding he has shown “steady progress and his brain, body and vital parameters have improved”. The 66-year-old spiritual guru is the founder of the Isha Foundation and has launched campaigns like ‘Save Soil’ and ‘Rally for Rivers’ for environment conservation. He had been suffering from severe headaches for the last four weeks. Despite the severity of the pain, he continued with his normal daily schedule and social activities and even conducted the Maha Shivaratri function on March 8, the statement said. The headache worsened by March 15, when he consulted Dr. Vinit Suri, the hospital’s senior consultant neurologist, over phone, it said. Suri immediately suspected a subdural haematoma and advised an urgent MRI, it added. The spiritual leader underwent a brain MRI on the same day, and it revealed massive bleeding in the skull. “There was evidence of a chronic bleed of three to four weeks duration as well as fresh bleeding that had occurred within a duration of 24 to 48 hours,” the statement said. Sadhguru was advised immediate hospitalisation and appropriate medication schedule adjustment, but he had important meetings and events scheduled for March 15 and March 16, it said, adding he completed the meetings with the support of pain medication. On March 17, he developed a decline in his level of consciousness, and weakness in the left leg, and was admitted to the medical facility under the care of Dr. Suri. The CT scan revealed a marked increase in brain swelling and a decision was taken to operate, it said. Sadhguru was managed by a team of doctors comprising Dr. Vinit Suri, Dr. Pranav Kumar, Dr. Sudheer Tyagi and Dr. S. Chatterjee and underwent an emergency brain surgery on March 17 to remove the bleeding in the skull, the statement said. Baloch militants attack Pakistan’s Gwadar Port; 8 terrorists killed [Eight gunmen who attacked Pakistan’s Gwadar port on on March 20 have been killed, Sarfraz Bugti, the chief minister of Balochistan province, where the port is located, has said](. In a post on X, he said, “Eight terrorists tried to attack the Gwadar Port Authority complex today. All of them have been neutralised by security forces.” Media reports say that militants entered the Gwadar Port Authority Complex and opened fire while multiple explosions were also reported in the area. Security forces foiled the attack and killed the eight attackers, the Express Tribune newspaper reported, citing sources. The attackers were neutralised while trying to gain entry into the port complex, it said. Majeed Brigade of the proscribed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has claimed responsibility for the attack, the report said. Balochistan, bordering Iran and Afghanistan, is home to a long-running violent insurgency. Baloch insurgent groups have previously carried out several attacks targeting the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects. Thousands of Chinese personnel are working in Pakistan on a number of projects being carried out under the aegis of the CPEC. The separatist BLA is opposed to China’s investments in Balochistan and accuses China and Pakistan of exploitation of the resource-rich province. The attack comes on a day when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asserted that his government will not tolerate any acts of cross-border terrorism. According to an annual security report issued by the Centre for Research and Security Studies, a think tank, Pakistan witnessed 1,524 violence-related fatalities and 1,463 injuries from 789 terror attacks and counter-terror operations in 2023 — marking a six-year high record. Meanwhile, the country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asserted that his government will not tolerate any acts of cross-border terrorism. In Brief The [BJP on March 20 suffered a major setback in Jharkhand as BJP MLA from Mandu seat Jai Prakash Bhai Patel joined the Indian National Congress]( (INC) ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In the presence of AICC in-charge of Jharkhand Alam Gir Alam, Jharkhand Congress chief Rajesh Thakur, Jharkhand Minister Alamgir Alam and party’s media and publicity department head Pawan Khera, Patel said that BJP’s ideologies didn’t align with his father Tek Lal Mahto’s. Praising Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Nyay Jodo Yatra, he expressed confidence that the INDIA alliance will win all the 14 seats in the Jharkhand Lok Sabha elections. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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