The superintendence, direction and control of all elections to the Panchayats are vested in

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — D, The State Election Commission. Article 243K, inserted by the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992, vests the superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, ALL elections to the Panchayats in a State Election Commission (SEC), consisting of a State Election Commissioner appointed by the Governor. (Article 243ZA does the same for Municipalities.) These local-body elections are deliberately kept OUT of the Election Commission of India's remit.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) The Governor merely APPOINTS the State Election Commissioner and protects his tenure; the Governor does not himself superintend, direct or conduct panchayat elections.  (b) The ECI (Article 324) conducts elections to Parliament, State Legislatures and the offices of President and Vice-President — it has NO role in panchayat or municipal elections.  (c) The DPRO is an administrative officer of the state's panchayati raj department; he is not the constitutional authority for conducting elections.

Concept: The 73rd Amendment created a distinct constitutional machinery for local elections. Article 243K establishes a State Election Commission (SEC) to superintend, direct and control all panchayat elections — mirroring the ECI's role but kept separate from it. The SEC is an independent constitutional body: the State Election Commissioner can be removed only in the same manner and on the same grounds as a High Court judge, and his service conditions cannot be varied to his disadvantage after appointment.

State PCS 2020 Q100 — Polity & Governance PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2020 Q100 — Polity & Governance PYQ with Answer