Arun Goel, a member of the Commission, has tendered his resignation just days before the Commission is supposed to declare the election schedule. The abrupt resignation of one Election Commissioner surprised the Commission because it was in the middle of planning and consulting with many stakeholders on how to conduct the elections.
Arun Goel delivered his resignation letter to President Draupadi Murmu after returning unexpectedly from Kolkata, where he had gone for meetings with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar, allegedly without notifying the CEC in writing. The resignation was accepted right away. There have been a lot of concerns and rumours raised by the Election Commissioner’s abrupt decision, timing, and mystery.
Source: NDTV
There is currently only one member of the three-person Election Commission: the CEC. It is true that the Commission has previously conducted elections with just one member, and those elections were conducted effectively and successfully. However, that avoids the question of why, following the abrupt resignation of one member, no action was done to replace the gap before the member’s tenure ended last month.
The appointment process has now been started by the government, and a meeting of the prime minister’s selection committee is scheduled for March 15. Given its dominance on the committee, it is well known that the government will make the final decision. It overturned the Supreme Court’s decision to adopt a method that prioritised integrity and neutrality by enacting new legislation last year that gave it the authority to choose candidates.
Source: NDTV India
Goel’s resignation has been cited as the result of personal or medical issues. However, this hasn’t always been accepted as fact. He was slated to become the CEC and had a lengthy tenure ahead of him.It is important to remember that he was appointed in a rush in a single day in 2022 and that he also decided to leave in a rush in a single day. There are rumours that he disagreed with the CEC on matters concerning the conduct of elections.
There are other theories as well, such as the idea that he might have been pressured into quitting. The Election Commission is a crucial institution in a democracy, hence the circumstances and reasons behind the resignation must be made known to the public. The functioning of the Election Commission, a constitutional authority, is highly scrutinised by the public and ought to be transparent and reliable. Its credibility is damaged by abrupt resignations and appointments.
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