Suggestions to strengthen the ECI-

♤ Give constitutional protection for all three-election commissioners as opposed to just one at present.

♤ Institutionalize the convention where the senior most EC should be automatically elevated as CEC in order to instil a feeling of security in the minds of the ECs and that they are insulated from executive interference in the same manner as CEC.

♤ Reducing the ECI’s dependence on DoPT, Law Ministry and Home Ministry. The ECI should have an independent secretariat for itself and frame its own recruitment rules and shortlist and appoint officers on its own.

♤ Its expenditures must be charged upon the Consolidated Fund of India similar to other constitutional bodies such as the UPSC.

Elections are the bedrock of democracy and the EC’s credibility is central to democratic legitimacy. Hence, the guardian of elections itself needs urgent institutional safeguards to protect its autonomy.