Speaking at a programme in Kolkata, Bose said, “A political party has every right to complain against any person including the Governor. I respect that.”

“Now the truth. ‘Log Sabha’ (a portal for receiving complaints or suggestions directly from the people during the Lok Sabha polls) is there for people to log in… The grievances will be forwarded to the Election Commission of India. There is no interference from the Governor. I repeat, there is no interference from the Governor,” he added.

“During the panchayat polls, Bengal had seen violence. Governor was on the streets. The feedback I got was that the Governor’s presence made a difference. Now also the Governor will be available to the people to hear their grievances, if any. Being with the people is against the election process, is a new definition that I will have to think about now,” Bose said.

On Friday, TMC lodged a complaint with the ECI against Bose alleging that he was “illegally interfering” and “attempting to run a parallel office akin to that of the Election Commission of India”. In the complaint, the party also questioned the Governor’s recent visit to Dinhata in Cooch Behar district after the followers of Union Minister of State Nisith Pramanik, who is the BJP candidate from Cooch Behar, and state minister Udayan Guha clashed recently.

Last Sunday, the Raj Bhavan launched a ‘Log Sabha’ portal to directly connect with the people during the 2024 general election. According to the new initiative, any citizen can communicate with the Governor via the dedicated email ID logsabha.rajbhavankolkata@gmail.com. According to the Raj Bhavan, complaints received are forwarded to the ECI for necessary action.

During the panchayat polls last year, the Raj Bhavan opened a ‘peace room’ where citizens could lodge complaints. Hundreds of complaints poured in during that election which saw nearly 50 poll-related deaths.