Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday said he would take a call on an application seeking recall of the Supreme Court’s September 23 split verdict concerning the constitutional validity of the provisions of Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023.
Senior Advocate Gopal Shankaranarayanan submitted that an interlocutory application had been filed seeking recall of the September 23 decision delivered by a Bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma.
The application raises an apprehension of bias on the ground that Justice Sharma’s son is associated with the Election Commission as its standing counsel. The applicant has sought recall of the September 23 order and a fresh hearing before an appropriate Bench.
The September 23 split verdict was delivered in the challenges to the 2023 law governing the appointment of the CEC and Election Commissioners. The Bench of Justices Datta and Sharma delivered separate opinions on whether the challenge raised questions warranting consideration by a larger Bench.
Justice Datta took the view that the existing constitutional position and the Supreme Court’s earlier judgment in Anoop Baranwal v. Union of India provided the necessary framework, while Justice Sharma found that the petitions raised substantial questions of constitutional law concerning the appointment mechanism and the composition of the selection committee. Both judges, however, agreed that the matter should be placed before the CJI for consideration of a larger Bench.