The conduct of elections in India after independence became the responsibility of the EC, which came up as a constitutional institution in 1950. It was visualised as a structure with a definite function – Article 324 of the Constitution of India elaborates its tasks and responsibilities. It had the normative purpose of concretising the process of representation and free choice in government formation as also streamlining democratic praxis. This chapter highlights its nature and role in transforming Indian democracy. The EC, from being a regulatory institution that oversaw elections, also became a path-paver for political practice. It systematised voting and contesting practices and made efforts towards a more transparent and accountable electoral conduct. In other words, it contributed to bolstering procedural democracy. The Supreme Court, with its judgments and directions, strengthened the EC's hands in this endeavour. Voters and parties in course of time expected more from the electoral administration, demanding procedural simplification, work efficiency and more choices (such as the choice to express their disapproval of contestants). The EC worked towards the fulfilment of some of these expectations.

Constitutional Institution

According to Robert Pastor, it is after the Second World War that independent election commissions began to emerge and evolve (1999: 5). These commissions were important in bringing about ‘horizontal and vertical accountability’ and ‘defend[ing] democracy outside the courts’ (Pastor, 1999: 5; Kildea, 2020: 469). In India it was from the time of political reforms of 1919 under the colonial state that ‘distinct legal structures for elections were codified’ (Gilmartin and Moog, 2012: 136–37). Unlike electoral commissions of many democracies such as the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, which were created by legislative statutes, the EC of India was created by the Constitution (the Electoral Commission of South Africa, which came into being much later – that is, in 1996 – is also a constitutional institution). According to David Gilmartin and Robert Moog, the EC of India was conceptualised as standing ‘apart’ from the government and ‘above’ everyday politics, and its significance lay in the constitutional effort to link the process of elections to the idea of the ‘nation’ (Gilmartin and Moog, 2012: 137).