The Ministry of Law has appointed former finance secretary and current Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar as the next chief election commissioner (CEC). He will assume charge from May 15 after incumbent CEC Sushil Chandra retires on May 14.
After the announcement, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju tweeted, “My best wishes to Shri Rajiv Kumar.”
In pursuance of clause (2) of article 324 of the Constitution, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Rajiv Kumar as the Chief Election Commissioner with effect from the 15th May, 2022.My best wishes to Shri Rajiv Kumar pic.twitter.com/QnFLRLiVPm
— Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) May 12, 2022
Kumar was appointed as the election commissioner on September 1, 2020. He is likely to demit office in February 2025. While in office, Kumar will oversee the 2024 Lok Sabha election and several Assembly polls along with the elections of the president and vice-president of India.
More about Rajiv Kumar
Born on February 19, 1960, Kumar holds degrees in BSc, LLB, PGDM, and a Master’s degree in public policy. According to his LinkedIn profile, Kumar completed his LLB from Delhi University between 1979 and 1982. He is also an alumnus of the TERI School of Advanced Studies.
He is an Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1984-batch, who superannuated from service in February 2020.
The 62-year-old officer has extensive experience in working “across the social sector, environment and forests, human resources, finance and banking sector,” a government statement had said earlier.
Kumar’s contribution as an officer
Kumar held the post of finance secretary between September 2017 and February 2020. During his tenure, he undertook several banking, insurance and pension reforms. To curb circulation of black money, the officer froze bank accounts of 3.38 lakh shell companies, which were used for creating fictitious equity.
For public sector banks, Kumar implemented a recapitalisation programme of Rs 2.11 lakh crore to support capital adequacy of these institutions and prevent default. He is credited with implementing prudential norms of lending for bankers and borrowers.
Kumar has been instrumental in streamlining the National Pension System (NPS) which extends its benefits to about 18 lakh central government employees.
Kumar has also held other positions such as director for the Central Board of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), SBI and NABARD. He has also been member of the Economic Intelligence Council (EIC), Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), Bank Board Bureau (BBB) and Financial Sector Regulatory Appointments Search Committee (FSRASC).
As the director and joint secretary in the Tribal Affairs Ministry between 2001 and 2007, Kumar drafted the Scheduled Tribes (Reorganisation of Forests Rights) Bill, 2005. It was under his supervision that the Special Central Assistance to States and Grants under Art. 275(1) of the Constitution was granted for the development of scheduled and tribal areas.
Prior to being appointed as the election commissioner, Kumar had held the post of chairman of the Public Enterprises Selection Board since April 2020.
Trekking in Himalayas
According to the ECI portal, Kumar is a keen trekker and has crossed several passes in the Himalayan Mountain range in Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Tibet and Sikkim. He has also trekked in Sahyadri mountain ranges or the Western Ghats. Apart from trekking, Kumar enjoys listening to Indian vocal classical and devotional music, and practises meditation.
