About Gyanesh Kumar, New CEC And Law In Question (image: x.com/SpokespersonECI)
New Delhi: Gyanesh Kumar was appointed as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Monday. He will succeed current CEC Rajiv Kumar who is set to retire on Tuesday. Kumar will remain in the post till January 26, 2029. As per the law, a CEC or an EC retires at the age of 65 or can have a tenure in the poll body for six years.
Gyanesh Kumar was appointed after a meeting of the Election Committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi. He is the first CEC to be appointed under the provision of the new law – Chief Election Commissioner And Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service And Term of Office) Act, 2023. Meanwhile, Gandhi asked the government to postpone the appointment until the Supreme Court decides on the petitions challenging the new appointment process.
The top court to decide on the matter on Wednesday.
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Gyanesh Kumar
As the new CEC, Gyanesh Kumar would be in charge of the Assembly election in NDA-ruled Bihar, which is due later this year. In 2026, he would oversee Assembly elections in West Bengal, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Assam. Overall, he will preside the Commission as it conducts 20 Assembly elections, the elections for President and Vice-President in 2027, and prepares for the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
Kumar is a 1988-batch former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Kerala cadre. In the government of Kerala, he has worked as the assistant collector of Ernakulam, sub-collector of Adoor (Pathanamthitta), and held several key positions like managing director of the Kerala State Development Corporation for SC/ST, and municipal commissioner of the Corporation of Cochin. He has also served as the secretary to the government of Kerala and worked across multiple departments, including finance resources, fast-track projects and the public works department. Aside from this, Kumar was also served as the resident commissioner at Kerala House in Delhi from 2012 to 2016.
While working with the Central government also, Kumar’s contributions in different roles and positions were noteworthy. He served as Parliamentary Affairs Secretary, Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), and Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Defence in the Union Ministry.
Election Commissioner Shri Gyanesh Kumar appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner of India with effect from 19.02.25#ECI #CEC pic.twitter.com/NhfVRxTI43
— Spokesperson ECI (@SpokespersonECI) February 17, 2025
As an Additional Secretary in the MHA, Kumar played a significant role in preparing the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill and exercising the decisions following abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and division of the state into two Union Territories. His involvement in the process was appreciated for handling sensitive political matter with prowess and expertise.
In 2020, Kumar was also entrusted with managing issues related to the Supreme Court case concerning the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. He was involved in the setting up of the Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. As per the reports, he is known to be close to Home Minister Amit Shah. Further, during Kumar’s term as Secretary of the Cooperation Ministry, the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) (Amendment) Act, 2023, passed with the objective of promoting transparency and accountability in the cooperative sector.
Kumar retired on January 31, 2024 and got appointed as Election Commissioner on March 14, 2024. Hailing from Uttar Pradesh, he is a B.Tech graduate from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, and studied Business Finance at the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts of India and Environmental Economics in HIID, Harvard University, US.
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New Law, Earlier Practice
The new Act, replaced the earlier Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991, dealt with the appointment, salary, and removal of the CEC and ECs.
As per the new provision, the CEC and ECs will be appointed by the President upon the recommendation of a three-member Selection Committee, comprising Prime Minister, a Union Cabinet Minister – nominated by the Prime Minister, and the Leader of Opposition, or leader of the largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha. Earlier, the CEC used to be selected by the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition and the Chief Justice. The Opposition raised criticism over the removal of Chief Justice in the poll body as per the new law, claiming it jeopardised the autonomy of the poll panel and attacked its balance of power.
After the new legislation passed, multiple petitions challenging its validity were filed in the apex court. Though the Court refused to stay the appointments but accepted to listen to the matter. The final judgement regarding the Act is still awaiting.
