Midnight transfers by ECI in West Bengal trigger protests
The Election Commission of India (ECI) ordered a late-night reshuffle of senior bureaucratic and police officials in West Bengal on Sunday, triggering street protests by the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and a walkout following sharp exchanges in Parliament.
In a March 15 order issued hours after announcing election schedules for four States and a Union Territory, the poll body transferred the State’s Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary (Home and Hill Affairs) and directed the Government to keep the transferred officers away from any election-related work.
The move sparked protests in the Rajya Sabha, led by TMC MP Derek O’Brien. Addressing the House before staging a walkout, he accused the poll panel of overstepping its authority by making late-night transfers under the Model Code of Conduct. He argued that while the ECI has powers to enforce the code during elections, they should not undermine the functioning of the State administration.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee staged a protest rally at Dorina Crossing in Kolkata on Monday. She said the “saffron camp” could change as many officers as it wished but “cannot change the Government. “The ECI said the reshuffle followed a review of the State’s preparedness for the upcoming Assembly elections.
Dushyant Nariala, a 1993-batch IAS officer, has been appointed Chief Secretary, replacing Nandini Chakravorty, who took charge in December 2025. Jagdish Prasad Meena, a 2004-batch IAS officer, has been named Principal Secretary for Home and Hill Affairs.
The poll panel also transferred four IPS officers, including the state’s police chief and the Kolkata Police Commissioner. Siddh Nath Gupta, a 1992-batch IPS officer, has been appointed Director General and Inspector General of Police, replacing Peeyush Pandey. Senior IPS officer Ajay Kumar Nand has been named the new Kolkata Police Commissioner, replacing Supratim Sarkar.
Gupta has previously handled major law-and-order challenges in the state, including the Nandigram agitation, the Lalgarh Naxal Movement and the Gorkhaland agitation in Darjeeling.
Opposition parties accused the poll panel of acting at the behest of the Bharatiya Janata Party, a charge the BJP rejected, saying the Opposition was attempting to malign constitutional institutions. While the TMC called the reshuffle a “panic reaction” by a party that fears electoral defeat, the BJP and Communist Party of India (Marxist) welcomed it as a step towards ensuring free and fair polls.
For the first time, the ECI also issued stricter guidelines under the Model Code of Conduct, directing political parties to respect citizens’ privacy, avoid demonstrations outside private residences, and seek property owners’ consent before putting up flags, banners or posters.
BJP unveils 144 picks in WB
New Delhi: The BJP on Monday released its first list of 144 candidates for West Bengal Assembly polls, including key leaders Suvendu Adhikari, Dilip Ghosh, Swapan Dasgupta, Ashok Dinda, Rudranil Ghosh, and Soumitra Chattopadhyay. Adhikari will contest from Bhabanipur and Nandigram, setting up a high-stakes face-off with CM Mamata Banerjee. Former State president Ghosh, Swapan Dasgupta, and actor Rudranil Ghosh are fielded from Kharagpur Sadar, Rashbehari, and Shibpur, respectively. The BJP has renominated 41 sitting MLAs and emphasized social diversity, with 57 candidates from teaching, law, medicine, social work, and armed forces. Youth representation is strong, with 36 nominees under 40.
