{
  "id": 9318677,
  "title": "Minister in CEC-EC selection panel fails ‘perception test’, says Justice Datta in split verdict",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/23/minister-in-cec-ec-selection-panel-fails-perception-test-says-justice",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-23T11:02:31.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Hindu",
    "slug": "the-hindu",
    "url": "https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/minister-in-cec-ec-selection-panel-fails-perception-test-says-justice-datta-in-split-verdict/article71499280.ece"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Supreme Court Justice Dipankar Datta has opined that the replacement of the Chief Justice of India with a Union Cabinet Minister in the selection panel for Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) amounts to an \"effective veto\" in favor of the Union government and fails the \"perception test\". This finding comes from a separate opinion in a split judgment, where Justice Datta emphasized the importance of independence in the appointment and functioning of the Election Commissioners for free and fair elections. The decision was reached after a split judgment, with Justice Satish Chandra Sharma of the Division Bench referring the case to a Constitution Bench due to the presence of substantial questions of constitutional interpretation.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}