TG Government Appoints Ex-IAS Officers as Sec, Vigilance Chief

The state government has appointed two retired IAS officers to key positions. I Rani Kumudini, a 1988 batch IAS officer, has been named the State Election Commissioner. M.G. Gopal, a 1983 batch IAS officer, has been appointed Vigilance Commissioner. The orders, appointing them for three years each, were issued by Chief Secretary A. Santhi Kumari on Tuesday. 

The new appointments come as Telangana prepares for several local bodies elections soon. The five-year tenure of sarpanches, mandal parishad and zilla parishad territorial constituencies expired by mid-2024, and the tenure of municipalities is set to end by early 2025. The GHMC elections are scheduled for March 2026, along with elections for other municipal corporations, including Warangal and Khammam.

Rani Kumudini succeeds C. Partha Sarathi, who was appointed by the previous



BRS government in September 2020. His tenure ended last week. Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy selected Rani Kumudini, who had served in various roles in the state government and at the Centre. Before her retirement, she was Special Chief Secretary, labour, a position she continued to hold after her official retirement with her services extended by the BRS government. 

The current Congress government, which came to power in December 2023, has now entrusted her with the critical responsibility of overseeing the state's election process. Gopal, a retired 1983 batch IAS officer, brings a wealth of experience as Vigilance Commissioner. He previously served in key positions, including as Special Chief Secretary, revenue, in Telangana and principal secretary, higher education, in undivided Andhra Pradesh.