Election Commission of India

#GS-02 Governance

Election Commission of India:

The Election Commission of India is an autonomous constitutional body responsible for administering Union and State election processes in India.
It is responsible for administering elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and State Legislative Assemblies in India, and the offices of the President and Vice President in the country.
Part XV of the Indian constitution deals with elections, and establishes a commission for these matters.

Constitutional Articles related to Elections in India
324	Superintendence, direction and control of elections to be vested in an Election Commission.
325	No person to be ineligible for inclusion in, or to claim to be included in a special, electoral roll-on grounds of religion, race, caste or sex.
326	Elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assemblies of States to be on the basis of adult suffrage.
327	Power of Parliament to make provision with respect to elections to Legislatures.
328	Power of Legislature of a State to make provision with respect to elections to such Legislature.
329	Bar to interference by courts in electoral matters.

The election commission shall consist of the Chief Election Commissioner and a such number of other election commissioners, if any, as the President may from time-to-time fix.
The appointment of the chief election commissioner and other election commissioners shall be made by the President.
When any other election commissioner is so appointed the Chief Election Commissioner shall act as the chairman of the election commission.
The President may also appoint after consultation with the election commission such regional commissioners as he may consider necessary to assist the election commission.
The conditions of service and tenure of office of the election commissioners and the regional commissioners shall be such as the President may by rule determine.

Originally the commission had only one election commissioner but after the Election Commissioner Amendment Act 1989, it has been made a multi-member body.
The commission currently consists of one Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.