Experts Raise Concerns Over Election Commission’s Autonomy and Transparency

Fast Summary:

• Legal experts and civil society leaders expressed concerns over the decreasing independence of the Election Commission of India during a roundtable discussion in Guntur on August 31.
• Siddhartha Law College principal Dr. C.H. Divakar Babu criticized changes in the selection committee, where a Union Minister replaced the Chief Justice of India, arguing that this undermines institutional autonomy.
• Dr. Babu highlighted issues with the deletion of 65 lakh voter records in Bihar during a rushed revision, calling it undemocratic.
• He advocated for using Aadhaar as a voter ID standard due to its widespread availability (99% coverage).
• Other speakers at the event, including V. Lakshman Reddy and Nadimpalli Gurudutt, emphasized linking Aadhaar to voter IDs for cleaner electoral rolls and protecting Constitutional bodies from political interference.

Indian Opinion Analysis:

The concerns raised at this roundtable touch upon key aspects of democratic integrity and institutional transparency. the critique regarding weakened autonomy due to alterations in the Election Commission’s selection process points toward potential risks for impartiality in managing elections-an essential pillar for maintaining free and fair democratic practices in India.Addressing systemic issues like large-scale deletions from electoral rolls is critical to ensuring voters’ rights are upheld without disenfranchisement caused by administrative rush or lack of scrutiny. Linking Aadhaar with voter identification could reduce such discrepancies but may also require balancing privacy safeguards alongside efficiency measures.

Urgent efforts might be necessary to uphold public trust in institutions like the Election Commission amidst growing scrutiny about political influence on their functioning-a concern echoed by those present at this discussion forum.

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