26 March 2024

• Polity: The appointment of two new Election Commissioners under the 2023 Act drew legal scrutiny, with petitions challenging the exclusion of the Chief Justice of India from the selection committee.
• Heritage: The Archaeological Survey of India announced the delisting of 18 centrally protected monuments, the first major delisting in decades.
• Space: The IAU formally approved "Statio Shiv Shakti" as the name for Chandrayaan-3's landing site, and the Supreme Court eased transmission line restrictions in the Great Indian Bustard habitat.
• Security: ISIS-Khorasan's claimed responsibility for the Moscow concert hall attack raised questions about Afghanistan under Taliban rule as a launchpad for global terrorism.

GS area: Polity (constitutional bodies, elections)

The appointment of Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu as Election Commissioners under the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act 2023 prompted continued legal challenge. The debate:

Election Commission of India facts:

• Established: 25 January 1950 (the day before Republic Day, symbolically).
• Composition: Chief Election Commissioner and as many Election Commissioners as the President may appoint (currently two).
• Functions: conducts elections to Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, state assemblies, and the offices of President and Vice-President.
• Tenure: six years from date of appointment or until age 65, whichever is earlier.
• Removal of CEC: only by an address of both houses of Parliament, like a Supreme Court judge.
• Removal of ECs: the CEC can recommend removal of an EC; the President acts on the recommendation.

Issues flagged:

• Financial independence: the ECI's expenses are not charged to the Consolidated Fund of India (unlike the Supreme Court), making it dependent on government allocation.
• No deregistration power: the ECI cannot deregister political parties for corruption or violation of the MCC; it can only freeze symbols.
• Selection: under the 2023 Act, the government-majority selection committee raises concerns about executive influence over a constitutional body that oversees the government's own electoral fate.

Static linkage: Polity (constitutional bodies, Election Commission, Article 324).

GS area: Art and Culture, Governance

The Archaeological Survey of India announced the delisting of 18 centrally protected monuments from the list of monuments of national importance. The list would shrink from 3,693 to 3,675. Examples of delisted monuments:

• Kos Minar No. 13 (Haryana)
• Barakhamba Cemetery (Delhi)
• Telia Nala Buddhist ruins (Varanasi)

Legal basis: Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act 1958 (AMASR Act). The Act defines "ancient monument" and governs protection, prohibited areas and construction restrictions near protected sites.

Why delisting:

• Some "monuments" no longer exist as identifiable structures.
• Some have become part of residential or commercial areas and cannot be practically protected.
• Budget and manpower constraints mean the ASI cannot meaningfully protect all 3,693 sites.

Static linkage: Art and culture (heritage management), governance.

GS area: Environment (biodiversity), Economy (energy)

The Supreme Court modified its earlier order that had prohibited high-power overhead transmission lines in areas with Great Indian Bustard habitat. The new approach:

• An expert committee was constituted to assess which specific transmission line routes posed the greatest collision risk to bustards.
• Lines in non-critical areas can proceed; critical flyways receive stricter review.

Great Indian Bustard facts:

• Status: Critically Endangered (IUCN), Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.
• Range: Rajasthan (primary, Thar Desert) and Gujarat. Small populations in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
• Population: fewer than 150 individuals remain.
• Primary threat: collision with overhead transmission lines. The bird flies low, cannot detect lines and cannot turn quickly.
• Why energy tension: the Thar Desert is India's primary solar zone. Transmission lines cross bustard habitat.

Static linkage: Environment (critically endangered species), economy (renewable energy).

GS area: International Relations, Internal security

The Moscow attack reinforced understanding of ISIS-Khorasan's geography:

• Khorasan region: historically covered northeast Iran, Afghanistan, and parts of Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan). The name means "land of the rising sun" in Persian.
• ISIS-K's origin: eastern Afghanistan (Nangarhar and Kunar provinces), from late 2014. It recruited from disaffected Taliban members and Pakistani Taliban fighters.
• ISIS-K vs Taliban: intense rivals. The Taliban has actively suppressed ISIS-K. ISIS-K attacks on Shia mosques in Afghanistan, Hazara communities and foreigners have killed hundreds.

Static linkage: International relations (terrorism, West Asia/Central Asia).

• Section 153A (IPC) conviction rate: only 2 per cent despite 1,804 cases registered in 2020. The Supreme Court on 26 March restated that actual incitement of enmity is the essential element for conviction. Prior government sanction is required to prosecute.
• COP Troika: UAE (COP28), Azerbaijan (COP29) and Brazil (COP30) form a consecutive-presidency troika. They called on all countries to align their new Nationally Determined Contributions with a 60 per cent emission reduction by 2035 versus 2019 levels, consistent with the 1.5°C pathway.
• Open Government Data platform: India's government has published over 1 lakh datasets on data.gov.in. API Setu provides standardised interfaces for government data access. Both fall under the National Data Governance Policy.