Mamata Banerjee and ECI logo.
Credit: PTI
Kolkata: The West Bengal government on Monday informed the Election Commission of India (ECI) that it has removed two of the five officials identified for committing “irregularities” in preparing electoral rolls from active election duty, but did not suspend them as requested by the poll panel.
Any disciplinary action against state government officers who have “consistently demonstrated sincerity and competence” would be “disproportionately harsh,” West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant wrote to the ECI.
The letter did not mention any action taken against the three other officers previously identified by the ECI.
The government said removing the two personnel from electoral revision and poll-related duties was “a first step” instead of suspending them as directed by the poll body earlier, while initiating an “internal inquiry into the issue,” Pant added.
He further stated that the state has undertaken a “comprehensive review of the existing processes and procedures” governing the “conduct of the said exercise.”
Pant’s response to the ECI was sent within two hours of the deadline — 3 pm Monday — set by the commission to execute its order suspending four officers and lodging police cases against them.
On August 5, the commission had announced its decision to suspend four officials — two Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and two Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) — and a casual data entry operator in West Bengal for alleged irregularities while preparing electoral rolls in Baruipur Purba and Moyna assembly constituencies in South 24 Parganas and Purba Medinipur districts respectively.
The commission directed the chief secretary to lodge FIRs against all five accused and sought an action taken report as soon as possible.
Two of the five penalised state government employees — Debottam Dutta Choudhury and Biplab Sarkar, both EROs — are officers of the WBCS (Executive) rank.
On August 8, the ECI set a 3 pm deadline on August 11 for the West Bengal government to suspend the four officials and submit a compliance report.
Pant informed the ECI that Sudipta Das, AERO, Moyna AC, and Surajit Halder, data entry operator at Baruipur Purba AC, have been withdrawn from electoral revision and poll-related duties.
Questioning the commission’s jurisdiction and the legality of its order, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of using the ECI to “intimidate state government officers” and declared she will not suspend the officers in question.