Rajiv Kumar Appointed as New Chief Election Commissioner of India

Rajiv Kumar, the current Election Commissioner, was named the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Thursday by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice. Kumar will succeed CEC Sushil Chandra, who is set to retire.

"In accordance with Article 324(2) of the Constitution, the President is pleased to appoint Rajiv Kumar as Chief Election Commissioner, effective May 15, 2022." "My heartfelt congratulations to Rajiv Kumar," said Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju.

On September 1, 2020, Kumar took over as Election Commissioner of the Election Commission of India (ECI). Kumar was the chairman of the Public Enterprises Selection Board prior to taking over at the Election Commission. He will take over as chairman of the PESB in April 2020.

Kumar, a 1984 batch Indian Administrative Service officer from the Bihar/Jharkhand cadre, retired from the IAS in February 2020.

Kumar, who was born on February 19, 1960, has a plethora of academic degrees, including a BSc, LLB, PGDM, and a master's in Public Policy, and has over 37 years of experience working for the government across ministries at the Centre and state cadre in the social sector, environment and forests, human resources, finance, and banking sectors.

Kumar has also served on the Central Boards of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), SBI, and NABARD, as well as the Economic Intelligence Council (EIC), the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), the Bank Board Bureau (BBB), and the Civil Services Board, among many other boards and committees.

Kumar has been credited with helping to conceptualise and implement mergers and acquisitions in the financial sector. Under him, the National Pension System (NPS) was also streamlined, benefiting approximately 18 lakh central government employees.