The Election Commission of India (ECI) rejected the West Bengal government’s request to withdraw disciplinary actions against four electoral officers accused of voter enrollment manipulation in two Assembly constituencies. The government sought to overturn the ECI’s order for strong measures, including suspension and FIR registration, against the officers. Despite the plea, the ECI insisted that the district magistrates proceed with the earlier directive to file FIRs against the officers.
Two of the officers facing FIR registration are Debottam Dutta Chowdhury, the Electoral Registration Officer of Baruipur East, and Tathagata Mandal, the Assistant Electoral Registration Officer of the same constituency. The other two officers are Biplob Sarkar, the ERO of Moyna Assembly constituency, and Sudipta Das, the AERO of the same constituency. Last year, the ECI instructed West Bengal to suspend these officers and file FIRs, a directive only partially implemented by the state government.
While the officers were suspended, FIRs were not lodged against them initially. The ECI later directed the district magistrates to ensure FIR registration, leading to the recent conflict between the state government and the poll body. The officers were accused of tampering with the voters’ list, prompting the ECI’s disciplinary actions. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticized the ECI’s stance, labeling it as biased towards the BJP and vowing to protect government employees from punitive measures.
