Sunil Arora takes charge as Chief Election Commissioner; to oversee 2019 elections

Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim which are scheduled to be held next year, will be conducted under his supervision.

Sunil Arora while taking charge as the Election Commissioner of India, in New Delhi on September 1, 2017. Photo: PIB

New Delhi: Sunil Arora took charge as the Chief Election Commissioner of India on Sunday morning, succeeding OP Rawat who retired today. After he took over as the 23rd CEC, he sought cooperation of political parties and people to make elections "totally free, fair and ethical". He will have a nearly two-and-a-half-year tenure as Chief Election Commissioner with 2019 General Elections to be conducted under his stewardship. Arora was appointed as election commissioner in September 2017. Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim are scheduled to be held next year under  him. The Centre formally announced the appointment of senior-most election commissioner Sunil Arora as the Chief Election Commissioner on Tuesday. A notification issued by the Law Ministry said the 62-year-old former bureaucrat would take over his new position Sunday. A CEC or an EC can have a tenure of six years or hold office till the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. The convention is to appoint the senior-most election commissioner as chief election commissioner. A former bureaucrat, Arora was appointed as the election commissioner in August last year. He had been the information and broadcasting secretary, and secretary in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. A 1980-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, Arora had worked in ministries such as finance, textiles and also at the Planning Commission. He had also served as the joint secretary in the Ministry of Civil Aviation from 1999-2002 and the chief managing director (CMD) of the Indian Airlines for five years.