Why Did Arun Goel Resign As Election Commissioner? What Happens Next?

Days before the expected announcement of the schedule for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, election commissioner Arun Goel on Saturday resigned, sparking speculation before the sudden move. Arun Goel’s tenure was till December 5, 2027, and he would have become chief election commissioner (CEC) after incumbent Rajiv Kumar retired in February next year.

A notification by the law ministry states Arun Goel’s resignation has been accepted by President Droupadi Murmu with effect from Saturday, March 9.

While it was not immediately known why Arun Goel stepped down, some media reports indicated there were “differences on various issues” and that could be a reason for his resignation. NDTV, citing top officials, reported that Arun Goel cited personal reasons while resigning.

Questioning the shock move, Mahua Moitra of the Trinamool Congress said on X (formally Twitter), “Why does EC Arun Goel resign right after ECI’s poll review mtng in Kolkata where he left abruptly? Apparently disagreed with Delhi’s diktat on num of phases & excessive force deployment . Will now be replaced by hand picked yes man.”

Another TMC leader and MP Saket Gokhale said it was concerning that two appointments are to be made to the poll panel ahead of the general elections.

“In a sudden move, Election Commissioner Arun Goel has abruptly resigned. The post of the other EC is vacant. That leaves the Election Commission now with just one Chief Election Commissioner,” Saket Gokhale said in a post on X.

The Congress, too, expressed “deep concern” over Arun Goel’s resignation and said that if the “systematic decimation” of independent institutions is not stopped then democracy shall be usurped by dictatorship.

“Election Commission or Election OMISSION? India now has only one Election Commissioner, even as Lok Sabha elections are to be announced in few days. Why?” Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said in a post on X.

“As I have said earlier, if we do not stop the systematic decimation of our independent institutions, our democracy shall be usurped by dictatorship!” Mallikarjun Kharge said.

Congress general secretary organisation KC Venugopal said in a post on X, “It is deeply concerning for the health of the world’s largest democracy that Election Commissioner Mr. Arun Goel has resigned on the cusp of the Lok Sabha elections.”

Who is Arun Goel?

Arun Goel, a retired bureaucrat, was a 1985-batch IAS officer of the Punjab cadre.

He had joined the Election Commission of India in November 2022.

Born on December 7, 1962, at Patiala, Arun Goel is MSc.(mathematics) and was awarded Chancellors Medal of Excellence for being first class first and record breaker throughout in all the examinations of Punjab University.

He is post-graduate with distinction in development economics from Churchill College, University of Cambridge, England and has been trained at John F Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA.

Following the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey in February and Arun Goel’s resignation, the three-member election panel has now only one member: chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar.

On November 18, 2022, Arun Goel had taken voluntary retirement and was appointed election commissioner just a day later.

His appointment had been challenged in the Supreme Court, which had asked the government what the “tearing hurry” was. The plea was later dismissed by a two-judge bench in 2023, which noted that a constitution bench had examined the issue but had refused to cancel Arun Goel’s appointment.

Arun Goel resigns: What happens next?

Under the new Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023, which was passed by the Parliament in December and came into effect on January 2, the central government can now appoint two election commissioners before the Lok Sabha elections.

The selection process consists of two committees – a three-member search committee led by the law minister and constituting two government secretaries; and a three-member selection committee headed by the prime minister and consisting of a Union minister recommended by the prime minister and the leader of Opposition.

Thus, of the six individuals involved in the process, three are members of the government and two are employed by the government.

The search committee will recommend five names to the selection committee but the latter is empowered to select commissioners from outside this list as well.

The chief election commissioner or election commissioner then gets appointed by the President.