Clarifying recent reports of internal administrative friction, sources within the Election Commission of India (ECI) revealed on Sunday that a letter sent to Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi pertained to the operational conduct of a senior Deputy Election Commissioner (DEC) on deputation, rather than Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
The clarification comes following widespread political buzz sparked by news reports suggesting deep policy divisions within the three-member body regarding work allocation and oversight of the commission’s digital infrastructure, specifically the ECINet portal.
Personnel Protocol vs. Policy Dissent
The letter, dated July 29, 2026, flagged concerns regarding work redistribution orders issued by a senior officer on deputation within the poll body. According to officials privy to the developments, routine administrative matters regarding personnel are generally escalated to the CEC; however, had the concerns been directed against CEC Gyanesh Kumar himself, official protocol would have mandated marking the communication directly to the President of India.
In a detailed press release following an internal review meeting, the ECI explicitly rejected claims of systemic policy dissent:
”The letter to Cabinet Secretary was not related to any policy matter of the Commission or IT division but related to working of an officer on deputation to ECI. The work re-distribution orders issued by the concerned officer were not actually implemented after the orders of the two Commissioners and the oversight over the IT division by the DEC was never actually withdrawn,” the poll body stated.
Opposition Demand & ECINet Technical Review
The reported friction had drawn swift reactions from opposition parties, who questioned the integrity of the election process, raised concerns over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, and demanded CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Opposition leaders alleged that centralized access restrictions on ECINet hindered state and district election officers from exercising their statutory powers.
Addressing these concerns, the ECI maintained that all final decisions remain “unanimous” and reiterated that field officers retain role-based statutory access. To ensure complete technical integrity, the Commission announced the creation of an expert panel:
- Expert Committee Formation: A panel headed by a Senior Deputy Election Commissioner and featuring an independent IIT/IIIT technical expert will review ECINet to verify full compliance with statutory Acts and Rules.
- System Flexibility: Upgradations based on feedback from State Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) will continue, with any future IT module changes vetted by a Committee of Officers prior to Commission approval.
