Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the senior of the two election commissioners after Chief Election Commission Rajiv Kumar, will succeed him, the government announced late this evening. As the next Chief Election Commissioner, he would be in charge of elections in five states – Opposition-ruled Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and NDA-ruled Bihar and Assam — in the immediate future. The election in Bihar is due later this year – the rest take place in 2026.
Mr Kumar, who will stay in the post January 26, 2029 — will altogether steer the Commission through 20 Assembly elections, elections for President and Vice-President in 2027, and preparations for the 2029 Lok Sabha election.
The announcement came shortly after a meeting of the Election Committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, where the Congress leader had given a note of dissent.
Mr Kumar, a 1988-batch IAS officer from Kerala cadre, was part of the Union Home Ministry and helped draft the bill that scrapped Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir in 2019. He is known to be close to Mr Shah.
The Congress objected to the selection as the law on appointment of the Chief Election Commission has been challenged in the Supreme Court, which will hear the matter on Saturday. The party has alleged that the government wants control of Election Commission and is not concerned about its credibility.
The government, sources said, did not want to postpone the selection process as it would leave a vacancy in the poll commission. The court had not stayed the appointment and legal opinion was sought before making the move, sources said.
Before parliament formed a law on the matter in 2023, the Chief Election Commissioner was appointed by the President of India on the advice of the Prime Minister. Traditionally, the seniormost of the two remaining Election commissioners gets the job.
Under the Chief Election Commissioner And Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service And Term of Office) Act, 2023, a committee headed by the law minister has to shortlist five candidates and the selection team – the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition and a cabinet minister — has to make the final selection.
But the parliamentary law had set aside the Supreme Court’s guideline that made the Chief Justice of India a part of the selection committee. The replacement of the CJI with a cabinet minister has been challenged in court, with petitioners alleging that it interfered with the balance of power in the committee and affected its neutrality.