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Gyanesh Kumar
Chief Election Commissioner of India since 2025 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Gyanesh Kumar (born 27 January 1964) is a 1988-batch[1] retired Indian Administrative Service officer belonging to the Kerala cadre serving as 26th Chief Election Commissioner of India from 19 February 2025 onwards. He is the first CEC to be appointed under the provisions of the 2023 CEC and Other EC Appointment Act.[2][3] Previously he served as Election Commissioner of India.[4] Before that, he superannuated as Co-operation Secretary of India on 31 January 2024.[5][6] In Bihar, the controversy intensified with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, where 65 lakh names were removed, including 22 lakh deceased voters and 36 lakh migrants. Congress and other opposition parties, like the RJD, alleged this was a deliberate attempt to suppress votes. The Election Commission of India has clarified that this electoral role is a draft roll and will be amended if any voter raises objection and submit their claim. Upon the direction of Supreme Court of India, the Election Commission of India has released the list of voters whose names were deleted from the SIR draft voter list. The notice further says any dissatisfied person can submit their claim along with a copy of their Aadhaar card. [7] [8]
Opposition leaders highlighted cases like a 124-year-old voter listed in Bihar, raising questions about the integrity of voter rolls. This claim by opposition appeared to be false and debunked by the voter Minta Devi herself as there was mistake in her voter id as D.O.B year was entered "1900" by typographical clerical error instead of her actual D.O.B. year 1990. [9]
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Early life and education
Kumar was born on 27 January 1964 in Agra district of the Indian state Uttar Pradesh.[10] He completed his BTech in Civil Engineering from IIT Kanpur[11] and studied Business Finance at ICFAI, India and Environmental Economics at HIID, Harvard University, US.[12]
Career
Gyanesh Kumar was the Co-operation Secretary and Parliamentary Affairs Secretary at the Centre earlier and also served as the additional Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs.[13] During his tenure, the Cooperation Ministry[14] saw enactment of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) (Amendment) Act, 2023,[15] and formation of three new national cooperative bodies – Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL), National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL), and National Cooperative Export Limited (NCEL).[16]
He played a crucial role in the timely launch of the CRCS-Sahara refund portal for submission of claims by genuine depositors of four Multi-State Cooperative Societies of Sahara Group.[17]
Kumar served as Joint Secretary (Defence Production) in the Ministry of Defence from 2007 to 2012, during the UPA government.[18]
On 19 February 2025, Kumar was appointed as new Chief Election Commissioner of India.[19]
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Vote Chori Controversy
In August 2025, Kumar became the focal point of a politically charged controversy when Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged widespread irregularities in voter rolls—an accusation termed “vote chori” (vote theft).Opposition leaders also accused Kumar of evading accountability and mimicking BJP rhetoric, pointing to his failure to address specific irregularities, like bulk voter registrations in Bihar or 100,250 “stolen” votes in Mahadevapura, and his selective demand for affidavits from opposition figures but not BJP leaders like Anurag Thakur. Social media posts on X echoed this, labeling Kumar’s press conference as a “political speech” lacking answers. However, Kumar’s defenders, including BJP’s Sambit Patra, argued he upheld constitutional duties, and his refusal to share voter data aligned with legal precedents. While the opposition’s perception of bias is fueled by Kumar’s combative tone and selective responses, no concrete evidence directly proves he acted as a BJP mouthpiece, leaving the accusation rooted in political distrust rather than substantiated fact.
References
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