Former Bureaucrats Sukhbir Sandhu and Gyanesh Kumar Appointed as Election Commissioners

Former bureaucrats Sukhbir Singh Sandhu from Punjab and Gyanesh Kumar from Kerala have been appointed as the new Election Commissioners following a panel chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The decision was confirmed by committee member and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. Out of over 200 candidates, six names were shortlisted for the selection process.

Sandhu and Kumar emerged as the final choices, selected by a majority of panel members. However, concerns were raised regarding the absence of the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel and the lack of clarity on the shortlisting process. Gyanesh Kumar, known for overseeing the abrogation of Article 370 during his tenure in the Home Ministry, fills one of the vacancies left by the retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey and the sudden resignation of Arun Goel.