NEW DELHI: An application seeking recall of the Supreme Court’s recent split verdict on the law governing the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) was mentioned before Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday. Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan mentioned the recall application before the CJI after the matter was released by the bench of Justice Dipankar Datta. The application challenges the September 23 verdict delivered by Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma in the proceedings concerning the constitutional validity of the 2023 law governing appointments to the Election Commission.
What the split verdict said
The two-judge bench delivered differing views on whether the challenge to the 2023 law should be referred to a larger bench. Justice Dipankar Datta declined the Centre’s request for a reference to a larger bench, while Justice Satish Chandra Sharma took the view that the matter warranted consideration by a larger bench. Following the divergence in opinion, the matter was placed before the Chief Justice of India for appropriate directions regarding the constitution of a bench to hear the case.
CJI: ‘We will examine and take a call’
During Wednesday’s proceedings, Sankaranarayanan sought consideration of the recall application before the CJI. CJI Surya Kant said the court would examine the application and take an appropriate decision.
The development comes amid the continuing legal challenge to the framework introduced by the 2023 law for appointing the CEC and ECs
