Dnyanesh Kumar took over as the 26th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Wednesday. Gyanesh Kumar was working as the Election Commissioner since March 2024 and was promoted as Chief Election Commissioner on Monday.
Gyanesh Kumar, a 1988 batch IAS officer, took over as the 26th Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of the country today. He is the first CEC to be appointed under the new law. His term will remain till 26 January 2029. Earlier, Rajiv Kumar was in the post of CEC and he retired on 18 February.
During the 4 -year tenure of Gyanesh Kumar, elections will be held in 20 states and 1 union territory (Puducherry). The elections will start from Bihar and the final election will be held in Mizoram.
Apart from Gyanesh Kumar, Vivek Joshi has been appointed as Election Commissioner. He is the Chief Secretary of Haryana and a 1989 batch IAS officer. At the same time, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu will continue in his post as Election Commissioner.
These appointments were approved in a meeting held on 17 February under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Home Minister Amit Shah and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the Lok Sabha also attended this meeting.