Gyanesh Kumar appointed Chief Election Commissioner, will hold responsibility till 2029

New Delhi. Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has been appointed as the new Chief Election Commissioner on Monday. Gyanesh Kumar is the first Chief Election Commissioner to be appointed under the new laws for the appointment of members of the Election Commission. His term will be till January 26, 2029. A few days after this, the Election Commission can announce the schedule of the next Lok Sabha elections.

Vivek Joshi, a 1989 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Haryana cadre, has been appointed Election Commissioner. Vivek Joshi (58) was born on 21 May 1966 and will handle the work in the Election Commission till 2031. According to the law, the Chief Election Commissioner or Election Commissioner retires at the age of 65 or can remain in the Commission for six years.

Earlier, Sushil Chandra, who was serving as the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), was appointed as the Election Commissioner. Chandra resigned from the CBDT before joining the commission. Joshi, a former Haryana chief secretary, was on central deputation since January 2019.

During his tenure as the 26th Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar will be responsible for the Bihar assembly elections later this year and Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal assembly elections in 2026.

He played a key role in implementing the decision after the abrogation of some provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution in Jammu and Kashmir during his tenure in the Union Home Ministry and took over as Election Commissioner on March 15, 2024. He is a 1988 batch Kerala cadre IAS officer.

After completing B.Tech in Civil Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, he studied Business Finance at ICFAI and Environmental Economics at HIID, Harvard University, USA. He has served in the Government of Kerala as Assistant Collector of Ernakulam, Sub-Collector of Adoor, Managing Director of Kerala State Development Corporation for SC/ST, Municipal Commissioner of Cochin Corporation, among others.

As Secretary to the Government of Kerala, Gyanesh Kumar handled diverse portfolios such as Finance Resources, Fast-Track Projects and Public Works Department. In the Government of India, he has also served as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Defence, Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, Secretary in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and Secretary in the Ministry of Cooperation.