ECI gets North Indian thrust with Anup Chandra Pandey's appointment

In terms of conducting elections, Pandey's task will not be very onerous. The UP Assembly elections will be the most challenging event

With the appointment of 62-year-old Anup Chandra Pandey as the new election commissioner (EC) on Tuesday, the constitutional body - which oversees all general and state elections in India - will have a new look.

It will be manned entirely by north Indians, with at least two ECs hailing from the adjoining districts in Uttar Pradesh (UP). This is unprecedented and puts in place an entirely new-look Election Commission of India (ECI).

Pandey, a retired 1984 batch UP cadre Indian Administrative Service officer, was brought back from retirement to be given the position. While in service, he had the distinction