By Aditi S Bade
Kumar became the 26th Chief Election Commissioner by taking an oath of office on February 19, 2025. In the address, Kumar stated that voting is important for the country & development and appealed to all eligible voters above 18 years of age to vote during the elections. He stated that the Election Commission will stand ready to defend its citizens’ constitutional rights. Kumar’s being appointed for the first time as a CEC under the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act of 2023 marked the session as historic.
This Act changed the mode of selection of members of the Election Commission by establishing a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, a Union Cabinet Minister, and the Leader of Opposition or leader of the major opposition party in the Lok Sabha. The names can also be submitted to the selection committee by a search committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary.
The appointment saw a political backlash as Rahul Gandhi, the LoP in the Lok Sabha, had opposed Kumar’s appointment based on the newly amended procedure of selection. Despite the political opposition, Kumar was appointed CEC as per the laid down procedure by the selection committee.
The Act in several ways amended the terms and conditions of service of the CEC and Election Commissioners (ECs). Their term now is six years or till the age of sixty-five whichever is earlier but they were given pay and perks of a Cabinet Secretary rather than a Supreme Court judge, which used to be the case before. The new terms also say that appointees should be persons of integrity, with experience and competence in election management, who shall have served in the position of Secretary or equivalent in government. Emphasis was placed on “interest, experience, and competency in election management” in the context of integrity and experience, with a secondary emphasis on having served for at least two years as Secretary or equivalent in government.