New Delhi, May 15 (IANS): After assuming the charge of 25th Chief Election Commissioner, Rajiv Kumar on Sunday said that he was honoured to have been given the responsibility to lead one of the finest institutions gifted by the Indian Constitution - the institution that reinforces our democracy.

He further said that a lot has been done during the last 70 years by the Election Commission to give our citizens free and fair elections, to ensure purity of the electoral rolls, prevent malpractices and enhance the quality of our elections.

"The Commission will follow the time-tested and democratic methods of consultations and consensus building in bringing about any major reforms responsible under the Constitution, ECI will not shy away from tough decisions", he said.

Kumar also said that technology will further be made the major instrument for simplification of processes and practices for bringing about transparency and ease of voter services for better election management and operations.

Kumar has been serving in ECI as Election Commissioner since September 1, 2020 and during his tenure as Election Commissioner, elections have been held for State Assemblies of Bihar in 2020, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal amidst Covid concerns in March-April 2021 and also elections to Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh recently in early 2022.

Sushil Chandra relinquished his charge on May 14 after completing his tenure as Chief Election Commissioner of India.