New Delhi, March 14 -- The government on Thursday notified the appointment of ex-bureaucrats Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu as election commissioners, hours after prime minister Narendra Modi-led high-powered committee sat down to fill the two vacancies in the Election Commission of India (ECI), which, prior to the new appointments, only had Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar.

"The President is pleased to appoint Shri Gyanesh Kumar, IAS (Retd.) and Dr Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, IAS (Retd.) as Election Commissioners in the Election Commission of India with effect from the date they assume charge of their office," the Ministry of Law and Justice said in a notification, a screenshot of which was shared by news agency PTI.

The...