Odisha Chief Electoral Officer Seeks Voluntary Retirement After SIR, Cites Personal Reasons

Odisha Chief Electoral Officer RS Gopalan has sought voluntary retirement, shortly after the state completed its Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. He said the decision was personal and unrelated to the exercise.

The 2001-batch IAS officer submitted his application on Wednesday, about two years before his scheduled retirement in September 2028. Originally from Tamil Nadu, Gopalan also serves as principal secretary of Odisha’s excise department.

Speaking to The Indian Express, he said he had completed 25 years in service and denied that pressure over the electoral revision had prompted his decision.

“It has nothing to do with the SIR. In Odisha, we have successfully completed the SIR exercise and I discharged my duty impartially. There was absolutely no pressure from anyone,” said Gopalan.

His application nevertheless drew questions from the opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD). Senior party leader Arun Sahoo linked the move to the controversy over voters being excluded from electoral rolls, saying it came while the Chief Election Commissioner was facing public outrage.

“He wouldn’t have applied for VRS had there not been pressure from the state government,” Sahoo said.

Odisha’s final electoral roll was published on September 21. It listed 3.16 crore voters, compared with 3.33 crore before the revision began. Opposition parties subsequently alleged that several genuine voters had been left out.

According to Indian Express sources, Gopalan had indicated in September that he wanted to seek voluntary retirement but waited until the SIR exercise was over before submitting his application. They said he may move to the private sector.

The application requires approval before he can leave service. A senior state government official said it would be forwarded to the Union government after receiving the state government’s clearance.

“Once the Centre clears his VRS application, he will be relieved from duty,” the official said.

Gopalan’s move follows the resignation of another officer serving in Odisha, Jagmohan Meena. The 2013-batch IPS officer left the service a few months earlier, also citing “personal reasons”.