Disrespectful to continue current process: Rahul

Congress leader and Lok Sabha's Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi, who was a part of the three-member panel that met on Monday to pick the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), made public his dissent note on the timing and composition of the meeting on Tuesday, hours after the government announced, late on Monday night, that the committee had picked Gynaesh Kumar for the post.

- Saubhadra Chatterji

NEW DELHI:

In his note, Gandhi said: "It will be both disrespectful and discourteous to the institutions as well as to the founding leaders of our nation for this committee to continue with its process of choosing the next CEC, when the very composition of this committee and the process is being challenged and soon to be heard by the Hon. Supreme Court."

A government functionary pointed out that while a hearing in a case to challenge the formation of the selection committee was due, "the Supreme Court has not given any stay order on the selection process."