New Delhi, Feb 17: Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar was appointed as the next chief election commissioner on Monday, the law ministry said.
Kumar is the first CEC to be appointed under a new law on the appointment of the members of the Election Commission (EC).
His term will run till January 26, 2029, days before the EC is expected to announce the schedule of the next Lok Sabha election.
Vivek Joshi, a 1989-batch Haryana-cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, has been appointed as an election commissioner.
Born on May 21, 1966, Joshi (58) will serve in the poll panel till 2031.
According to law, a CEC or an EC retires at the age of 65 or can have a tenure in the poll panel for six years.
Earlier, Sushil Chandra, who was serving as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairman, was appointed as an EC. He resigned from the CBDT before joining the poll authority.
Joshi, a former Haryana chief secretary, was on central deputation since January 2019.
During his tenure as the 26th CEC, Kumar will oversee the Bihar Assembly polls later this year, and the Kerala and Puducherry Assembly polls in 2026.
Similarly, he will oversee the Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, which are also due in 2026.
Kumar, who played a key role in implementing decisions following the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution in Jammu and Kashmir during his stint in the Union home ministry, took charge as an election commissioner on March 15, 2024. (PTI)
