• Source:JND
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday held a meeting to decide the next Chief Election Commissioner of India. With current CEC Rajeev Kumar's tenure ending in few days, the panel led by PM Modi will decide the next head for the poll body from a panel of five names proposed by the Search Committee headed by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal. 

However, the selection panel has the authority to consider other names than those suggested by the committee. The Conditions of Service and Term of Office Act, 2023 says that the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and a Union Minister nominated by the Prime Minister are entitled to select the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners. 

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This is a first time that a selection panel has been set up to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner. Earlier, the appointments were done by the President on the recommendation of the Prime Minister as there was no law passed by the parliament for the appointment of these posts. Traditionally, the CEC was decided on the basis of seniority and it was usually defined by who was appointed earlier to the Commission.

The current Commission comprises of Rajiv Kumar as the CEC and Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu as the two Election Commissioners. The case of seniority in Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu is complicated as they were both appointed to the commission on the same day and belong to the same batch of IAS officers.

However, Gyanesh Kumar would have been given the priority as his name comes first in the appointment notification issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Indian Express reported, citing sources.

(More updates to follow)

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