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http://dx.doi.org/10.17176/20230814-104226-0 https://verfassungsblog.de/an-attack-on-indian-democracy/ An Attack on Indian Democracy - On the Bill to Curb the Independence of the Election Commission Jain, Anmol eng 2023-08-14 electronic resource text/html ddc:342 BJP Democratic Backsliding Election Commission elections Narendra Modi Verfassungsblog Verfassungsblog--2366-7044 CC BY-SA 4.0 Last week, the Indian government introduced a bill in Parliament providing for, inter alia, the mechanism for appointing Election Commissioners in India. The bill proposes the creation of a three-member Selection Committee composed of the Prime Minister, a Union Minister nominated by the Prime Minister, and the Leader of the Opposition to make recommendations to the President in this regard. The proposed Executive-dominated Selection Committee raises several questions about the conduct of free and fair elections in India. In the paragraphs to follow, I first discuss a recent Supreme Court decision that preceded the introduction of this bill and how this bill, as a response to the Court decision, is instructive to constitutional drafters. I then discuss the possible approaches the Supreme Court of India could adopt when the new legislation is challenged to push back against the Executive’s undemocratic maneuvers.