Kolkata, 21 January (H.S.) : The Election Commission of India (ECI) has taken a firm stand against the West Bengal government over the action taken against four officials accused of illegally adding names to the voters’ list. The Commission has written to the state’s Chief Secretary, directing him to submit a detailed report within 72 hours on the steps taken against the concerned officials. The report must be submitted by 5 pm on January 24, the ECI said.

In its letter, the Commission also sought clarification on which officer or department failed to comply with its directives and the reasons behind the non-implementation of its orders. The ECI has instructed that written explanations be obtained from the officers or departments that took decisions contrary to the Commission’s directions, clearly stating why the prescribed rules were not followed.

The Commission has further asked for the complete set of documents related to the inquiry against the four officials, including the charges framed, their replies, inquiry reports, punishment orders, and relevant file notings.

The case pertains to allegations of illegal inclusion of names in the electoral rolls in the Mayna Assembly constituency in Purba Medinipur district and the Baruipur Purba Assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas. Following these allegations, the ECI had directed the registration of FIRs and the suspension of the concerned Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs).

The four officials against whom action was ordered are Tathagata Mondal, Debottam Dutta Choudhury, Biplab Sarkar and Sudipta Das, all officers of the West Bengal Civil Service. The Commission had also instructed the then Chief Secretary, Manoj Pant, to ensure the registration of FIRs against the officials and had issued two reminders in this regard.

After continued non-compliance, the ECI on January 2 directed the concerned district magistrates to directly register FIRs. However, even after nearly 20 days, the Commission’s directives have reportedly not been implemented. During this period, the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal sent two reminders to the district magistrates.

Subsequently, the state government sought legal advice from the Advocate General and sent a communication to the CEO’s office, stating that the allegations against the four officials were not serious enough to warrant the registration of FIRs and that imposing such stringent punishment for what were described as minor offences would be inappropriate. The state also questioned why “severe punishment” was being imposed for “minor lapses.”

The Election Commission, however, remained firm on its position and, on Wednesday, sought a comprehensive report from the Chief Secretary.

Notably, Debottam Dutta Choudhury and Tathagata Mondal were serving as ERO and AERO, respectively, in Baruipur Purba, while Biplab Sarkar and Sudipta Das held the same positions in the Mayna Assembly constituency. Currently, Debottam Dutta Choudhury is posted as Deputy Project Director of the South 24 Parganas District Rural Development Agency, Tathagata Mondal is an Assistant Officer associated with the 100-day employment scheme in Jaynagar-I Block, Biplab Sarkar is serving as District Minority Officer in Purba Medinipur, and Sudipta Das is posted as Panchayat Accounts and Audit Officer in Tamluk Block. The Commission had also directed the registration of an FIR against a data entry operator, Surajit Haldar, in connection with the case.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh