Arun Goel quits as Election Commissioner ahead of polls-

• Days ahead of the announcement of the schedule for the upcoming Lok Sabha election, Election Commissioner Arun Goel resigned recently.
• According to a notification by the Law Ministry, his resignation has been accepted by President

Controversy surrounding the appointment of Arun Goel

• After 37 years in the IAS, Goel took voluntary retirement on November 18, 2022, a month before he was set to retire.
• The very next day, November 19, the President appointed him as Election Commissioner, filling the post that had been vacant since May 15, 2022.
• Goel’s appointment came at a time when the SC was hearing petitions on the procedure for appointing Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.
• The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) moved the court in April 2023 against Goel’s appointment.
• It said that the appointment was arbitrary and he seemed to have remarkable foresight to seek voluntary retirement ahead of his appointment as EC.

The Election Commission of India

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) is an autonomous constitutional authority responsible for administering Union and State election processes in India.
• It was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th January 1950 (celebrated as national voters' day).
• The secretariat of the commission is in New Delhi.
• The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and State Legislative Assemblies in India, and the offices of the President and Vice President in the country.

Prelims Takeaway

• The Election Commission of India
• National voters' day