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 the 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.
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.
His appointment came hours after the Congress asked the government to defer its decision on the new CEC till the Supreme Court concludes its hearing on a petition challenging the composition of the selection panel. -- PTI
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