New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday said every officer in the institution is “fully authorised” to offer suggestions for improving the electoral system, while underlining that several “unanimous decisions” have been taken by the poll body in recent months.
The Commission said that differing views, observations, and suggestions are a normal part of deliberations within any institution and pointed out that the decision-making process involves not only the three Election Commissioners but also officials across the organisation.
The poll panel said it has introduced around 40 new initiatives and undertaken several electoral reforms, including electoral roll revision, including the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), across the country, with the agreement of all authorised officers.
The latest controversy comes after a leading daily published an investigative report claiming that on 14 occasions over a period of 10 months, two Election Commissioners had objected on record to steps taken by the Commission.
According to the report, the objections related to a range of decisions and processes, including allegations that the Commissioners were kept in the dark about certain matters as well as issues concerning the addition of new voters and deletion of names from electoral rolls.
In a statement, the Election Commission said: “The ECI is a constitutional body that functions under the strict mandate of Article 324 of the Constitution, statutory rules and established institutional conventions. The Commission operates as a multi-member constitutional body. Written notes, observations, technical suggestions and internal checks-and-balances are standard, ongoing practices designed to ensure complete transparency, legal compliance and operational rigour. All actions of the ECI have been in accordance with the laws and instructions of the Commission.”
The Commission said that all official orders, decisions and administrative directions issued by it carry full legal sanction and are issued in accordance with established statutory procedures under The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023.
“Any operational queries or inputs raised by Commission members during draft stages are part of standard administrative practice aimed at safeguarding voter rights. The suggestions given by the Commissioners were for further improving the electoral processes,” the poll body said.
“Differing views and observations are a normal part of deliberation in any institution. They are a part of the decision-making process before a final decision is taken. Not only the three Commissioners, but every officer of the Commission is fully authorised to give his suggestions to the Commission for improving the electoral system,” it said.
The ECI also said that focusing on selected internal notes and observations without taking into account the wider body of decisions and initiatives would provide an incomplete picture of the Commission’s functioning.
“Highlighting certain specific internal notes/observations spread over the period of 10 months while overlooking the much larger body of approvals, decisions, instructions and initiatives gives only one part of the picture. In recent months, the Commission has taken numerous decisions, issued instructions, introduced around 40 new initiatives and undertaken many electoral reforms including the conduct of Electoral roll revision (including SIR) across the country. All these decisions are an outcome of the unanimous decisions of the full Commission in the past one year,” the ECI added.
The Commission also highlighted the elections and election-related exercises it has conducted in recent months, including major elections in Bihar, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Assam, and West Bengal.
The poll panel said the conduct of these elections involved a wide-ranging administrative and operational machinery and required numerous approvals and instructions from the Commission.
On concerns relating to its digital platforms and electoral data, the ECI said its systems are protected by established security protocols and statutory authorities continue to exercise their powers under the law.
“The Commission’s digital platforms, such as ECINet, operate under strict data security protocols to prevent unauthorised tampering, manipulation, etc. IT security checks and audit controls are standard cybersecurity measures implemented across national databases. Statutory authorities, including Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and District Election Officers (DEOs), function as per statutory powers for registration and deletion under law,” the statement read.
The Election Commission reiterated that it remains committed to carrying out its constitutional responsibilities and maintaining the integrity of the electoral process.
(IANS)
