New Delhi: Former secretary to the Government of India E.A.S. Sarma has written to President Droupadi Murmu raising concerns about the status of the Election Commission of India, particularly after the resignation of election commissioner Arun Goel. This has left the commission – usually comprising three members – with just one, chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar.
Goel’s resignation, Sarma points out, has raised multiple questions, including whether the election commissioner had raised questions over the way things were being done in the commission. The Election Commission has also been in the limelight recently because of the electoral bonds case, with the State Bank of India missing the Supreme Court-given deadline by which it had to reveal details of all bonds purchased to the EC.
Read the full text of Sarma’s letter below.
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E A S Sarma
Former Secretary to the Government of India
To
Smt. Droupadi Murmu
Hon’ble President of India
Respected Rashtrapati Ji,
Kindly refer to my letter of 7th March, 2024 about the attempts on the part of the political executive to deviate from the directions of the Hon’ble Supreme Court on appointment of Election Commissioners, the contentious Electoral Bonds scheme (EBS) and its planting BJP nominees on the Boards of Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), Electronics Corporation India Ltd (ECIL) and the SBI evidently to interfere at every stage of the electoral process in one way or the other, which in my view vitiates the sanctity of elections.
One Election Commissioner has recently retired and the political executive is trying to select a candidate of its choice to succeed him. Meanwhile, I find that Shri Arun Goel, the third Election Commissioner has tendered his resignation prematurely, though his term is due to expire only in 2027. Shri Goel’s resignation appears to have been accepted by the government in an undue hurry on the 9th of March, 2024 and the same was notified by the Ministry of Law & Justice yesterday.
This leaves the Election Commission of India limping with only one Election Commissioner, namely, Shri Rajiv Kumar to oversee the ensuing elections.
What has transpired thus far is too serious a matter that casts a shadow on the entire electoral process on which some of us and many political parties have expressed our concerns time and again.
In my view, the abrupt and somewhat inexplicable exit of Shri Goel raises the following questions:
- Did Shri Goel express his dissent on the way the political executive has been trying to interfere with the electoral process in several ways vitiating its sanctity?
- Did Shri Goel express doubts about the efficacy of the use of EVMs?
- Did he express his concern at the way the political executive has pressured the SBI not to disclose the details of the EBS?
- Was there any proposal from Shri Goel to freeze the residual amounts received by the political parties under the EBS to prevent their use in the ensuing elections?
- Did Shri Goel propose that BJP’s nominees from the Boards of BEL, ECIL and SBI be withdrawn to maintain the sanctity the electoral process?
- Did Shri Goel express his dissent on any other matter that would have displeased the political executive?
- Did the highest within the political executive force Shri Goel to tender his resignation to clear the way for the ruling party’s machinations?
I earnestly believe that the nation expects an independent inquiry into the above questions as they concern the integrity of the democratic processes in India and the future of our democracy itself. Such an inquiry needs to be independent of the political executive and preferably it needs to be entrusted by your office to a panel of the sitting members of the Supreme Court.
Pending such an enquiry, your office, invoking the authority under the Constitution, order that (i) no announcement of the election schedule be made by the Election Commission, (ii) no policy decisions/ announcements be made by the political executive, and (iii) no expenditure should be incurred by any political party from the funds received under the EBS.
Respected Rashtrapati Ji, your intervention at this critical juncture in the affairs of the nation is necessary and perhaps unavoidable to preserve the democratic character of our Constitution and the well-being of the nation.
May I, as a senior citizen, deeply concerned with the future of our democracy, appeal to you to step in, act decisively and ensure that the dreams of Dr B R Ambedkar and the other framers of our Constitution are fulfilled?
Respectfully,
E A S Sarma
10th March 2024