As each day passed and candidates for the post were either found to be ineligible as they did not meet the qualifications or were holding other posts, the appointment of Ramanamurthy came as close to the deadline as it could possibly have, failing which the polls scheduled on March 20 would have to be held without a election commissioner in place.
Goa’s recent experience with elections and election commissioners has not been very pleasant. The Zilla panchayat elections of last year were announced by one election commissioner and held under the aegis of another. The civic and other by-polls of March 20 are also facing a similar situation, the process having been started by one election commissioner and being held by another. Rather interesting is that Ramanamurthy is the third election commissioner that Goa has had in the space of less than six months that have been rather tumultuous where polls are considered.
A year ago the elections to the Zilla Panchayats, scheduled on March 22, 2020, had been postponed due to the pandemic and the janata curfew. The elections were finally held on December 12 and the counting taken up on December 14 last year. In November last, the term of 11 municipal councils ended and the State Election Commission issued a notification postponing the elections by three months. Earlier the same commission had recommended the date of polling to mid-October, but had hastily backtracked following questions from political parties and citizens as COVID cases were on the rise at that time. In January this year the State Election Commission had again issued a notification postponing the polls process by another three months. Ironically, it was a different Election Commissioner in place when this was done.
Here’s what has occurred since November last. On November 5, 2020 RK Srivastava who was the State Election Commissioner tendered his resignation from the post citing personal reasons. He was a former Chief Secretary of the State and was Commissioner for around two years before he quit. A month later, Srivastava was sentenced to two years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 35,000 in a case pertaining to the revival of a defunct housing society in Delhi using forged documents by the CBI court. His sudden departure prompted the government to appoint Choka Ram Garg as State Election Commissioner, a serving secretary in the government and who did not meet the criteria for appointment. He completed the Zilla Panchayat polls that had been postponed and issued the notification for the civic polls and the pending by-elections to panchayats. That’s when the office he holds came under the scanner and the resultant strictures passed by the Supreme Court that led to Garg quitting from the commission and the appointment of a new State Election Commissioner.
Ramanamurthy is not new to Goa. He has earlier served in the Goa government and returns to the State at a very crucial juncture. He has to complete the current poll process and very quickly announce the new dates for the polling in the five councils where elections stand postponed. The new State Election Commissioner, at his first interaction with the media says that he will discharge his duties as per the Constitutional mandate. Goa expects nothing less from the new incumbent of this post. And given the recent unsavoury episode the spotlight will be on Ramanamurthy and how he discharges his duties.
