Kolkata, 18 March (H.S.): Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly Election 2026, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has continued its administrative overhaul of the state police by transferring five Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs) across key police ranges. The move is part of the Commission’s ongoing efforts to ensure administrative neutrality and strengthen law-and-order arrangements before the polls.
According to the latest notification, new DIGs have been posted in the Raiganj, Murshidabad, Burdwan, Jalpaiguri and Presidency ranges. The Commission has directed the newly appointed officers to assume charge by Thursday morning.
In the Raiganj Range, 2009-batch IPS officer Amit Kumar Bharat Rathore, who was earlier posted in the Traffic and Road Safety wing, has been appointed as the new DIG, replacing Nimbalkar Santosh Uttamrao.
For the Murshidabad Range, 2011-batch IPS officer Ajit Singh Yadav has been appointed as DIG. He was previously serving as Superintendent of Police (DEO). He replaces Sudhir Kumar Neelakantam, who had only recently been shifted there from Raiganj but has now been removed by the Commission.
In the strategically important Jalpaiguri Range of north Bengal, DIG Waqar Raza has been replaced by 2009-batch IPS officer Anjali Singh, who was earlier serving in the Traffic department.
Similarly, in the Burdwan Range, DIG Shyam Singh has been replaced by Shrihari Pandey, a 2011-batch IPS officer who was earlier posted as DIG in the Intelligence Branch in north Bengal.
In the Presidency Range, Kankar Prasad Bami has been appointed as the new DIG, replacing Bhaskar Mukherjee.
The latest reshuffle is part of a wider administrative exercise initiated by the Election Commission soon after the announcement of the poll schedule. Earlier, several senior officials, including the Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, Director General of Police and the Kolkata Police Commissioner, were also replaced.
The Commission had also carried out changes at the Inspector General level in both south and north Bengal. New Police Commissioners were appointed in urban commissionerates such as Asansol-Durgapur, Howrah, Barrackpore and Chandannagar.
In addition, more than a dozen Superintendents of Police have been transferred across districts, significantly altering the policing structure at the district level.
Officials said the continuing reshuffle reflects the Commission’s intent to maintain strict oversight of the administrative and law-and-order machinery, particularly in sensitive regions, to ensure free and fair elections.
The Commission has also clarified that officers who have been removed or transferred will not be assigned any election-related responsibilities until the completion of the electoral process.
While the timing and scale of these changes have triggered political reactions in the state, the Election Commission has continued with its phased restructuring, indicating a firm approach towards election management in West Bengal.
Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh
