Shouldn’t there be show of fairness: Supreme Court on PM panel choosing Chief Election Commissioner

6 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 31, 2026 04:59 AM IST Questioning the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) by a three-member committee comprising the Prime Minister, a Union Minister and the Leader of Opposition, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked “should there be no show of fairness” in the procedure. The bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and S C Sharma was hearing petitions challenging the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023, which provides for their selection by the three-member panel.Defending the law, the Centre, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, said it would be wrong to assume that the PM and the minister would “not act in the inter