Ashok Lavasa

Ashok Lavasa
IAS
Lavasa in August 2016
Election Commissioner of India
In office
23 January 2018 – 18 August 2020
Appointed byPresident of India then, Ram Nath Kovind
Vice PresidentVenkaiah Naidu
Preceded byG. V. G. Krishnamurty
Succeeded byRajiv Kumar[1]
Finance Secretary of India (in charge of Department of Expenditure)
In office
30 April 2016 – 30 October 2017
Appointed byAppointments Committee of the Cabinet
Preceded byRatan P. Watal
Succeeded byAjay Narayan Jha
Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary of India
In office
29 August 2014 – 30 April 2016
Appointed byAppointments Committee of the Cabinet
Preceded byV. Rajagopalan
Succeeded byAjay Narayan Jha
Civil Aviation Secretary of India
In office
1 January 2014 – 29 August 2014
Appointed byAppointments Committee of the Cabinet
Preceded byK. N. Srivastava
Succeeded byV. Somasundaran
Personal details
Born (1957-10-21) 21 October 1957 (age 67)
Rajasthan, India
Nationality Indian
Alma materRASHTRIYA MILITARY SCHOOL BELGAUM ; Deshbandhu College Delhi University
Southern Cross University, New South Wales
OccupationRetired IAS officer

Ashok Lavasa (IAST: Aśoka Lavāsā) (born 21 October 1957) is a retired 1980 batch Indian Administrative Service officer of Haryana cadre and was one of the two Election Commissioners of India. He has also served as the Finance Secretary of India, Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary of India and Civil Aviation Secretary of India. He served as the Vice President of Asian Development Bank (ADB) from August 2020 to August 2023.[2]

Education

Ashok Lavasa did his schooling from Belgaum Military School. Ashok Lavasa is a graduate (BA Honours) from Deshbandhu college and a postgraduate (MA) in English from University of Delhi,[3][4][5] he has an MBA degree from Southern Cross University in New South Wales, Australia.[3][5] In addition, has an MPhil in defence and strategic studies.[4]

Career

Before IAS

Before being appointed as an IAS officer, Lavasa taught literature in the Delhi University.[4][5] He also had a stint with the State Bank of India as a probationary officer.[4][5]

As an IAS officer

Lavasa calling on the Vice President of India, Venkaiah Naidu in February 2018

Lavasa has served in key positions for both the Government of India and the Government of Haryana, like as Principal Secretary and Financial Commissioner (Renewable Energy Sources), Principal Secretary and Financial Commissioner (Power), Chief Coordinator (Industries), resident commissioner of Haryana, managing director of Haryana State Federation of Co-operative Sugar Mills (HSFCOSML), director of Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC), managing director of Haryana Tourism Corporation (HTC), and as the deputy commissioner and district magistrate of Jind and Gurgaon districts in the Haryana government,[3][4][5] and as the Union Finance Secretary, Union Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary, Union Civil Aviation Secretary, special secretary in the Ministry of Power, joint secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, and as a joint secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs of the Ministry of Finance in the Indian government.[3][4][5]

Civil Aviation Secretary

Lavasa was appointed as the Union Civil Aviation Secretary by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) in December 2013,[6][7][8][9] he assumed office on 1 January 2014,[3] and demitted it on 29 August 2014,[3] when he was appointed as the Union Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary.

Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary

Lavasa was appointed as the Union Environment, Forests and Climate Change Secretary by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) in August 2014,[10] he assumed office on 29 August 2014,[3] and demitted it on 30 April 2016,[3] when he was appointed as the Union Expenditure Secretary.

Expenditure Secretary

Lavasa was appointed as the Union Expenditure Secretary by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) in April 2016,[11][12][13] he assumed office on 30 April 2016,[3] and demitted it and simultaneously superannuated from service on 30 October 2017.[3]

As the seniormost secretary in the Ministry of Finance after the retirement of Ratan Watal, Lavasa was designated as Finance Secretary in May 2016.[14][15][16]

Post-retirement

Lavasa taking charge as one of the two Election Commissioners of India in February 2018

Election Commissioner of India

Post-retirement, Lavasa was appointed as one of the two Election Commissioners of India in January 2018.[17][18][19][20][21] Lavasa assumed charge as Election Commissioner on 23 January 2018.[22][23][24]

Mr Lavasa made headlines in 2019 after a dissenting opinion on a panel's ruling of complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah during the Lok Sabha election campaign.

Six complaints were filed against PM Modi. Lavasa disagreed with his panel colleagues in some of these cases.

He soon stopped attending meetings, saying "minority decisions" were being "suppressed in a manner contrary to well-established conventions observed by multi-member statutory bodies".

In December 2019, Mr Lavasa in an article in The Indian Express wrote: "The honest, however, go on regardless, perhaps driven by an inner force that borders on recklessness. A society that creates hurdles which exhaust the honest or wound them paves the path for its own perdition".

This was two months after an income tax notice was sent to his wife, Novel S Lavasa, over alleged discrepancies in filings. Sources had said the information had been sought "related to foreign exchange". Mrs Lavasa said she had "paid all taxes due" and "disclosed all income" and that she was cooperating.[25][26]

He served as Vice president of Asian Development Bank (ADB) from 31 August 2020 till 31 August 2023. [27]

Work

  • Lavasa, Ashok; Sethi, Ravi Mohan (2010). An Uncivil Servant: The Success Story of a Bureaucrat Turned Businessman. New Delhi: Rupa Publications. ISBN 978-81-291-1704-5.
  • Lavasa, Ashok (2021): An Ordinary Life: Portrait of an Indian Generation. Harper India ISBN 978-93-5422-317-4

References

  1. ^ "Rajeev Kumar replaces Ashok Lavasa as Election Commissioner". The Indian Express. New Delhi. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa appointed ADB vice-president". The Hindu. 15 July 2020. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Ashok Lavasa - Executive Record Sheet". Department of Personnel and Training, Government of India. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Election Commissioner - Shri Ashok Lavasa". Election Commission of India. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e f "Who is Ashok Lavasa, the new Election Commissioner of India". The Financial Express. New Delhi. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Ashok Lavasa to be new civil aviation secretary". Business Line. New Delhi. 25 December 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  7. ^ "Ashok Lavasa appointed Civil Aviation Secretary". Business Standard. New Delhi. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  8. ^ "Ashok Lavasa appointed civil aviation secretary". The Financial Express. New Delhi. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  9. ^ "Ashok Lavasa appointed civil aviation secretary". Firstpost. New Delhi. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  10. ^ "New secretaries appointed for civil aviation, steel ministries". The Economic Times. New Delhi. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  11. ^ Prasad, Gireesh Chandra (26 April 2018). "Ashok Lavasa appointed as new expenditure secretary". The Hindu. New Delhi: Live Mint. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  12. ^ "Ashok Lavasa named Expenditure Secretary". The Economic Times. New Delhi. 27 April 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  13. ^ Surabhi (26 April 2016). "Govt makes top level bureaucratic changes". Business Line. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  14. ^ Srivats, K. R. (31 May 2016). "Lavasa is Finance Secretary". Business Line. New Delhi: The Hindu. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  15. ^ "Ashok Lavasa takes over as finance secretary". Business Standard. New Delhi. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  16. ^ "Ashok Lavasa becomes new finance secretary". Live Mint. New Delhi: HT Media Ltd. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  17. ^ "Om Prakash Rawat to succeed AK Joti as new Chief Election Commissioner". The Indian Express. New Delhi. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  18. ^ "Om Prakash Rawat to take over as chief election commissioner on January 23". The Times of India. New Delhi. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  19. ^ "Om Prakash Rawat appointed new Chief Election Commissioner; Ashok Lavasa named commissioner". The Financial Express. New Delhi. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  20. ^ Bose, Abhimanyu, ed. (21 January 2018). "Om Prakash Rawat Appointed New Chief Election Commissioner". NDTV. New Delhi. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  21. ^ "OP Rawat to be next Chief Election Commissioner, to succeed AK Joti". Daily News and Analysis. New Delhi. 21 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.
  22. ^ "Subject: Sh. Ashok Lavasa takes over as new Election Commissioner" (PDF). Election Commission of India. New Delhi. 23 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  23. ^ "Ashok Lavasa assumes charge as Election Commissioner". The New Indian Express. New Delhi. 23 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  24. ^ "Sh. Ashok Lavasa takes over as new Election Commissioner". Business Standard. Delhi. 23 January 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  25. ^ "Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa Quits To Join Asian Development Bank". NDTV.com. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  26. ^ Scroll Staff. "Ashok Lavasa resigns as election commissioner to join Asian Development Bank". Scroll.in. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  27. ^ "Will Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa Not Join ADB?". NewsClick. 26 July 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
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