Who is Rajiv Kumar? Former CEC named as HDFC Bank's part-time chairman

From leading India's public sector bank clean-up to overseeing the world's biggest election, Rajiv Kumar now takes on one of corporate India's most closely watched boardroom roles

HDFC Bank, on Monday, announced former Finance Secretary and former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar as its choice for part-time non-executive chairman for three years. 

Coming after months of uncertainty following the sudden resignation of Atanu Chakraborty, Kumar’s appointment is still subject to approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He will succeed interim chairman Keki M Mistry, who has been serving in the role since March 2026. Kumar has also been appointed as an additional independent director for four years from June 30, 2026, subject to shareholders’ approval.

Why HDFC Bank needed a new chairman

Kumar’s appointment follows an unusually turbulent period for HDFC Bank. Former chairman Atanu Chakraborty resigned in March this year, saying certain happenings and practices within the bank were not in line with his personal values and ethics. An independent legal review conducted by Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Wadia Ghandy & Co later concluded that his allegations were not substantiated. Veteran banker Keki Mistry subsequently took over as interim chairman while the bank searched for a permanent successor.  As a part-time non-executive chairman, Kumar's role will be focused on guiding the board of directors and providing oversight on governance and strategy without participating in the day-to-day management of the bank.

 

How Rajiv Kumar helped reshape India’s banking sector

A 1984-batch IAS officer of the then Bihar cadre, now Jharkhand cadre, Kumar has spent nearly four decades in public service, much of it dealing with finance, banking and public policy. Before moving to the Election Commission, he retired as Finance Secretary in February 2020 after serving as Secretary in the Department of Financial Services between 2017 and 2020. 

It was during this period that India’s public sector banks were burdened with mounting bad loans, weak balance sheets and repeated capital requirements. Kumar oversaw the government’s clean-up of public sector banks, built around what became known as the “4R” strategy of recognition, resolution, recapitalisation and reforms. According to HDFC Bank, the strategy focused on transparent recognition of stressed assets, faster resolution under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, fresh capital support and governance reforms to strengthen lending practices. 

His tenure also coincided with one of the largest recapitalisation exercises in Indian banking, where the government infused more than ₹3 trillion into public sector banks and consolidated 27 state-owned lenders into 12 larger institutions in an effort to improve scale, efficiency and competitiveness. According to HDFC Bank, he played a key role in increasing deposit insurance cover from ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh. 

He also served on the Central Board of the Reserve Bank of India and the boards of State Bank of India and Nabard. 

From banking reforms to running the world’s biggest election

Kumar joined the Election Commission as Election Commissioner on September 1, 2020, before taking charge as India’s 25th Chief Election Commissioner on May 15, 2022. During his tenure, the Commission oversaw the Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections in 2022, several Assembly elections across states, the 2024 Lok Sabha election and the Jammu & Kashmir Assembly election. The Lok Sabha polls, involving about 969 million registered electors, saw a record 642 million people cast their votes, making it the world’s largest democratic exercise.

Why Rajiv Kumar’s tenure as CEC drew scrutiny

His tenure, however, was not without controversy. During and after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, several Opposition parties questioned the Election Commission’s neutrality and accused it of favouring the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The Commission also faced criticism over delays in publishing final voter turnout figures after polling, prompting petitions before the Supreme Court and demands from civil society groups for greater transparency through the publication of polling station-wise data. 

Kumar consistently rejected those allegations. He maintained that India’s electoral process was transparent and robust, arguing that the delay in publishing final turnout numbers was procedural because polling teams had to physically return electronic voting machines and statutory records before the figures could be reconciled. He also repeatedly defended electronic voting machines, saying there was no evidence of tampering and cautioning against creating unnecessary distrust around the electoral process. 

In his farewell address in February 2025, Kumar said the Election Commission was increasingly being made a “convenient scapegoat” by those unwilling to accept electoral outcomes. He argued that political parties participated in every stage of the election process and had opportunities to raise objections during polling, making post-result allegations both unfair and damaging to public confidence in democratic institutions.