Lavasa had two more years left in his service at the election commission and he could have retired as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in October 2022.
Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa resigned on Tuesday to join the Philippines-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) as vice-president next month. Lavasa was next in line to head the poll panel.
Requesting to be relieved on August 31, he has submitted his resignation to President Ram Nath Kovind. There has been no confirmation on whether the President has accepted his resignation. Ajay Kumar Singh, Press Secretary to President, told the Indian Express that he is not aware of the development.
The ADB, in its last month’s press statement on July 15, had announced Lavasa’s appointment stressing that “He (Lavasa) has extensive experience in public-private partnerships and infrastructure development at the state and federal levels, with deep knowledge on public policy and the role of the private sector”.
He will replace the in charge of private sector operations, and public-private partnerships Diwakar Gupta. Gupta completes his term by Aug 31.
A management team of 6 Vice-Presidents is headed by the ADB President. One Vice-President is appointed for three years term, which can be extended by another two years.
Lavasa had two more years left in his service at the election commission and he could have retired as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) in October 2022.
He would have conducted Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur, and Goa, among other states as CEC.
Sushil Chandra is next in the line of succession to become CEC after Lavasa’s premature exit.
Lavasa made to the news during 2019 elections after he opposed the clean chit given to Prime Minister and former BJP President Amit Shah for violation of the model code of conduct. He and his family members were later served notices by the IT department for alleged non-declaration of income and disproportionate assets. The family members have denied the allegations made against them by the IT department.
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