He has called for reforms to ensure a neutral selection process. YSRCP president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has admitted his party made a mistake by supporting the 2023 amendment that governed the appointment of the chief election commissioner (CEC) and other election commissioners.
But today, we regret giving that support. He called for the return of the previous panel, which used to comprise the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and the Chief Justice of India (CJI). The YSRCP chief also demanded similar reforms in the appointment of state election commissioners, arguing that chief ministers and ruling governments should not control the selection process. “The state election commission should not be appointed by the chief minister or the ruling government.
The 2023 amendment to the law ensured that election commissioners are selected by a panel comprising the prime minister, a cabinet minister nominated by the PM and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
Reddy said that the ruling establishment should not have a decisive advantage in appointing officials responsible for conducting elections. We made a mistake,” he said. “An examiner cannot be appointed by the student,” he said, adding that even an honest election commissioner could face criticism if the appointment was not made by a neutral body. It should be appointed by somebody neutral,” he said.
“Earlier, YSRCP supported this process of allowing the ruling party to make appointments.
