The Supreme Court agreed on Wednesday to hear pleas challenging the constitutional validity of a law that grants blanket prosecution immunity to election commissioners.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V Mohana issued notice to the Centre, seeking its response within four weeks.
The court tagged the petitions with a pending matter on the same issue. It subsequently scheduled the next hearing for December 18.
RJD MP Manoj Jha and activist Arun Agrawal filed separate petitions contesting Section 16 of the 2023 Election Commission Act.
Section 16 bars all courts from entertaining civil or criminal proceedings against current or former Chief Election Commissioners and Election Commissioners for official acts.
The petitioners argued that Parliament has handed election officials a protection wider than that granted to the President, judges, or lawmakers.
Jha contended that the Constitution never intended to give immunity from prosecution to election commissioners, unlike the security of tenure provided under Article 324.
He stated that the President faces prosecution after leaving office, yet former election commissioners receive lifelong immunity under this ordinary legislation.
The plea highlighted that even sitting judges face prosecution with sanction, whereas retired election commissioners remain shielded without any carve-out for corruption or crimes.
Agrawal emphasized in his petition that the provision improperly equates independence with freedom from the law, placing election authorities beyond judicial scrutiny.
He noted that the term “purporting to act” covers unauthorized acts while lacking any good faith condition to prevent arbitrary misuse.
Agrawal argued that Parliament could achieve independence through less restrictive safeguards against frivolous complaints rather than granting absolute protection.
He added that the law deprives citizens, candidates, and voters of legal remedies against corruption or improper removal of names from electoral rolls.
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