Dissent within poll panel is encouraged, EC Arun Goel quit due to personal reasons: CEC Rajiv Kumar

Goel, whose tenure was till December 2027, resigned on March 9.

New Delhi: Evading a direct reply on the sudden resignation of Arun Goel, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Saturday said "one's personal space should not be touched", while insisting that dissent within the panel is always encouraged.

Goel had on March 9 resigned from the Commission in the midst of Lok Sabha election preparation, amid speculation that he put in papers due to differences with Kumar. No official reason was cited for the former bureaucrat quitting the panel, forcing the government to scramble for filling the vacancies in the poll body. 

Addressing a press conference to announce the schedule for the Lok Sabha elections, Kumar said his "friend" Goel was a "distinguished member of our team" and that he thoroughly enjoyed working with him.

"But in every institution, we will have to give everyone personal space. I am sure the personal space shouldn't be touched and one should not be insensitive to ask personal questions. If he had personal reasons, it is fine and you must respect it," he said to a question on the reason for Goel taking the decision to quit.

Kumar said the Commission had a "very sound tradition" put in place by his "worthy predecessor" where "dissent within the four walls of the Election Commission" was encouraged.

"This (conducting elections) is such a complex process and three minds is always better than one. We discuss, we sleep over issues, we take time. We should keep people who challenge you near to you. So Commission has that tradition. It was there (earlier) and it should be there," he said.

Goel was the second Election Commissioner after Ashok Lavasa, who later joined the Asian Development Bank, to resign in less than four years. Lavasa had during 2019 Lok Sabha elections objected to the Commission giving a clean chit to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah on cases of violation of Model Code of Conduct.

He had filed a dissent note and later resigned from the post. Lavasa's wife also received a notice from the Income Tax Department during this period.