New CEC Sunil Arora says LS election work has begun
■ Wants parties, voters to help ensure fair polls
Taking over as the new chief election commissioner, Sunil Arora on Sunday sought cooperation of political parties and people to make elections “totally free, fair and ethical” and signalled that the poll panel has begun preparations for parliamentary polls in 2019.
The 62- year- old former bureaucrat, who is the 23rd CEC and succeeds O. P. Rawat who demitted office on Saturday, will conduct the Lok Sabha elections expected around May.
Highlighting that the EC has started internal preparations for the 2019 general elections, Mr Arora said, “We will ensure voting rights for our soldiers and persons with disability. We will give the country a fair, free, credible, impartial and ethical elections.”
“All of us in the commission will put our best foot forward to meet expectations of all stakeholders under the purview of Constitution of India,” he said.
Besides the parliamentary polls, the 2019 Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal
Pradesh and Sikkim will also be held during Mr Arora’s tenure that will last up to April 12, 2021. After assuming charges, the new CEC sought cooperation from all stakeholders — political parties, media, civil society organisations and people at large — “in making elections totally free, fair, peaceful, accessible and ethical”.
Mr Arora was appointed as an election commissioner on August 31, 2017. He had earlier served as secretary in ministry of information and broadcasting and ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship. A 1980- batch IAS officer of the Rajast- han cadre, Mr Arora has also worked in finance and textiles ministries and Planning Commission.
He served as joint secretary in the ministry of civil aviation between 1999- 2002 and chairman and MD, Indian Airlines, for five years.