Will examine whether acted unilaterally; SC issues notice to Gyanesh Kumar, two election commissioners

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has issued a notice to the election commission in petitions alleging that chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar exercised his powers unilaterally. The court observed that constitutional institutions must function in accordance with the law. The court directed the election commission to produce documents clarifying whether decisions were taken unanimously, by majority, or solely by the chief election commissioner.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana considered the pleas. The court refused to issue an interim order seeking the suspension of Gyanesh Kumar. The court clarified that an order cannot be passed solely on the basis of newspaper reports.

The petitioners alleged that Gyanesh Kumar had taken various decisions, issued guidelines and introduced software changes without the approval of the other two election commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi. Rakesh Kumar Singh and advocate Shailendra Mani Tripathi are the petitioners.

The petition also specifically challenges changes made to Form 6, which is used to include new voters in the electoral roll. The petitioners alleged that the form was modified without the consent of the other commissioners. The Supreme Court has sought the relevant records to examine whether these decisions were taken in accordance with the procedures prescribed by law.