Identify the correct statement regarding the Election Commission of India:

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 3:

Smt. V. S. Ramadevi holds the distinct historical position of being the first and, to date, the only woman to have ever served as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India. She took charge briefly from November 26, 1990, to December 11, 1990. While her tenure was extremely short, her appointment itself was a landmark event in the history of the Indian Election Commission, breaking a long streak of male leadership in this crucial constitutional body. The Election Commission is central to maintaining democracy, and her appointment reflected a step toward inclusive leadership at the highest levels of Indian governance, making this statement factually accurate in its historical context, even if the phrasing "only woman" is based on the data up to the time of the question paper.

The incorrect option is 1:

This statement contains a factual error regarding the establishment date of the Election Commission of India (ECI). While the ECI is indeed a permanent Constitutional Body established under Article 324 of the Constitution, it was formally established on **January 25, 1950**, not January 25, 1952. January 25th is globally celebrated as National Voters’ Day in India in commemoration of the ECI's foundation in 1950. The year 1952 is significant as it marked the year of India’s first general elections, which were managed by the ECI, but the establishment predates this by two years.

The incorrect option is 2:

This statement is incorrect because while the Election Commission became a multi-member body in 1989 and then permanently from 1993 onwards, the transition period means it was not continuously multi-member from 1990. Specifically, it briefly became multi-member in 1989 but was reverted to a single-member body in October 1989. It was then permanently converted to a three-member body (one CEC and two Election Commissioners) in **1993**. Since 1993, the multi-member system has been continuously operational, and all decisions are indeed taken unanimously or by majority vote, as stipulated by the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Conditions of Service) Act, 1991. The year '1990' makes this option factually imprecise regarding the continuous multi-member structure.

The incorrect option is 4:

This statement contains an error regarding the tenure of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and the Election Commissioners (ECs). The President does appoint the CEC and ECs, but their fixed tenure is **six years** or until they attain the age of **65 years**, whichever is earlier, according to the rules set by the Parliament. The mention of "five years" and "60 years" in this option is incorrect. The long and fixed tenure is a deliberate constitutional safeguard intended to protect the ECI officials from political pressure and ensure their independence.