Former bureaucrat Shantmanu was sworn in as the State Election Commissioner of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday.
Lt Gov Manoj Sinha administered the oath of office to the retired IAS officer at a ceremony held at Lok Bhavan here.
The oath-taking ceremony was attended by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, along with his cabinet colleagues, including Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary and Speaker Abdul Rahim Rather. Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo and Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat were also present.
On February 17, Sinha appointed Shantmanu as the new state election commissioner for a period of five years or till he attains the age of 70 years, whichever is earlier.
Shantmanu, a 1991-batch officer of the AGMUT cadre who recently retired as additional chief secretary and financial commissioner in Jammu and Kashmir, replaced B R Sharma who completed his tenure in April 2024.
Shantmanu’s appointment is expected to clear the way for panchayat and local body elections in the Union Territory.
While the tenure of municipalities ended in October-November 2023, the panchayats and block development councils completed their five-year term on January 9, 2024. With the tenures of district development councils ending on February 24, there will be no elected local bodies functioning in the Union Territory.
According to officials, elections to local bodies could not be held on time due to multiple factors, including the delimitation exercise and the reservation of wards for Other Backward Classes.
Recently, the chief minister had said that his government was making necessary arrangements to hold these elections at the earliest, but the vacancy of the SEC was a hurdle.
Under the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act and relevant Municipal Acts, the State Election Commission holds the authority for the preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of local elections.