A day after strongly attacking the Election Commission (EC) for its alleged “bias” in ordering transfers of a bevy of IPS officers and an IAS officer for reported dereliction of poll duty, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee finally seemed to relent and follow the order of the poll panel.
Comparing the Commission’s style of functioning with that of Muhammad bin Tughlaq, the Chief Minister said notwithstanding the EC orders she would reinstate the respective officers in their original posts.
“I will not only reinstate the DMs and SPs in their original posts but also honour them for their ability by taking them along with me wherever I go,” she said, demanding the removal of Deputy Election Commissioner from charges of Bengal.
“I respect the EC but these days they are playing politics to appease certain parties,” she said adding the EC has no right to interfere with the task of maintaining law and order in the State. Incidentally in a new development, the Commission on Tuesday asked the State Government to appoint an ADG, law and Order. The post has been laying vacant for quite sometime now.
A Trinamool Congress Member of Parliament said, “The Government understands its responsibilities and will never cross constitutional limits regarding elections but the EC should have consulted the State before ordering such transfers.”
Earlier, the EC threw out a request from the State Chief Secretary to reconsider its order for transfer of the erring officers and took a rigid stand asking the Government to implement the transfer orders by 10 am on Wednesday.
Chief Secretary Sanjay Mitra wrote to the EC asking it to reconsider its order and select officials from the panel sent by the State Government. Sources said the reluctant Government was finally beginning the process of transfers as per EC directives.
“The EC had given the State Government time till 10 am on Wednesday to carry the transfer orders,” an EC officer said adding the poll panel could cancel or postpone the elections in the said five-six districts from where the officers have been transferred.
A senior official in the EC was quoted as saying that it had the “power to rescind the current schedule and notify a fresh schedule for elections in West Bengal” as there was a precedent of this.
Banerjee was promptly told by some of her senior advisors about the futility of taking the commission head on as her party would lose all the advantage of being in the Government once the districts were flooded with Central forces and more observers.
“In any case after Monday’s massive broadside she launched against the ECI the Chief Minister could expect additional number of central forces and closer monitoring of the poll process,” State election officials quoting EC sources in Delhi said.
The full bench of the commission which had visited the State earlier on Sunday had afterwards ordered the transfer of five SPs, a DM and two ADMs for not performing impartially. Within hours the Chief Minister thundered back from public rallies daring the commission to do whatever they liked insisting she would not implement the orders.
She said the commission was acting as an agent of the Congress, BJP and the CPI(M) adding she would never take biased orders from the commission and not transfer the said officers. “If they want to send me to jail then I am prepared for it but I won’t transfer a single officer” she said triggering fear of one of the major constitutional face-offs in the electoral history of free India.