Former Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar Appointed As Election Commissioner In Place Of Ashok Lavasa

President of India has appointed former finance secretary Rajiv Kumaras as the new Election Commissioner.

Election Commission of India

Days after retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Ashok Lavasa announced his move to step down from his post of Election Commissioner, the President of India appointed former finance secretary Rajiv Kumaras the new Election Commissioner. According to a notification by the Ministry of Law and Justice, Rajiv Kumar will take charge "with effect from with the date he assumes office vice Ashok Lavasa, Election Commissioner who has resigned with effect from 31st August, 2020." A 1984 batch Jharkhand cadre IAS officer, Kumar has worked as a bureaucrat for over three decades across various departments. He has often been credited with bringing in reforms in banking as well as in the bureaucracy during his stints in the Finance Ministry and the Ministry of Personnel respectively. Earlier this week, Lavasa, who was next in line to take charge as the chief of Indian poll body tendered his resignation to President Ram Nath Kovind and requested that he be relieved from his responsibilities by the end of this month. Lavasa still has over two years left in his tenure at the Election Commission of India. He would have retired as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in October 2022. After his early departure, Sushil Chandra is next in the line of succession. Meanwhile, Lavasa is all set to join the Asian Development Bank as vice-president next month. He will take over from vice-president Diwakar Gupta who's tenure ends on August 31.