VS Sampath is new head of poll panel

Fighting attempts to block his appointment, Veeravalli Sundaram Sampath was finally on Wednesday elevated as the new chief election commissioner to replace SY Qureshi.  He will preside over the next general elections in 2014.

Sampath’s file had mysteriously gone missing in the law ministry. What is more intriguing is that law secretary BA Agrawal had called on Lok Sabha opposition leader Sushma Swaraj’s husband Swaraj Kaushal, a former governor and a lawyer, at his residence last week , ahead of LK Advani shooting a letter to the PM, calling for a collegium that includes leaders of opposition of the two houses of parliament for appointment of the CEC.

Insiders say, prime minister Manmohan Singh had seen through the developments and decided not to deviate from the process. The Cabinet Committee on Appointments clears all top postings including the CEC. But instead of calling a CCA meeting, the PMO secured concurrence of the ministers concerned in the committee through circulation of a file.

Only after the PMO intervention, the law secretary found the missing file and submitted to the prime minister.