Ex-judge Abhay Oka: Collegium and Election Commission appointments not comparable

Former Supreme Court judge Abhay S Oka has highlighted that there are no similarities between the Collegium system and the process for appointing the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners. Oka also addressed the split decision by two high court judges on whether the challenge to the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners should be reviewed by a larger panel.

On September 24, Justice Dipankar Datta chose not to send the petitions against the 2023 law on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners to a larger bench, defending the existing system and criticizing the Central government for selectively endorsing the recommendations of the Supreme Court Collegium.

Meanwhile, Justice S C Sharma disagreed with Justice Datta. During the oral arguments, the government compared the appointment process to the Supreme Court Collegium system. However, Oka dismissed this comparison during an interview with The Indian Express. He explained that the Collegium involves extensive consultation at every stage, including objections from the Governor and Chief Minister of the state, an inquiry by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) under central government control, and a review by the Supreme Court Collegium after the initial recommendation.

In contrast, the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners consists of only three members and lacks the extensive consultation process. Oka emphasized that these two appointment systems are fundamentally different and cannot be compared.