India's CAG wins election to UN Board of Auditors

India on Friday won a crucial election to the UN Board of Auditors with its nominee Shashi Kant Sharma, the Comptroller and Auditor General, garnering the largest number of votes.

Sharma won 124 votes out of the total 186 cast in the General Assembly's Fifth Committee on Administrative and Budgetary questions. India won by a comfortable margin against its closest contender the Philippines, which got 62 votes.

Having obtained the required majority and the largest number of votes, Sharma will be appointed to the UN Board of Auditors for a six year term beginning July 1, 2014.

The General Assembly had established the UN Board of Auditors to audit of the accounts of the United Nations organisation and its funds and programmes and to report its findings and recommendations to the Assembly through the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions.

The Auditors-Generals of UN member states are elected to the Board. India had last sat on the board in 1993 for six years.