The Election Commission (EC) has suspended Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) and Block Development Officer (BDO) of Basirhat-II, Sumitra Pratim Pradhan, for unilaterally appointing 11 “Additional AEROs” without formal notification.

The individuals were not formally notified under Section 13C of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, their involvement was deemed a “grave lapse” and a violation of statutory provisions

The Election Commission has declared all actions and hearings conducted by the 11 officials to be null and void ab initio (legally void from the beginning).

To ensure the integrity of the electoral process, the ECI has mandated that all hearings and statutory work previously handled by these officials must be conducted afresh following the correct legal procedures.

The EC has further instructed the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer and the Chief Secretary, have been instructed to ensure strict compliance with these orders and to provide a status update on the disciplinary actions within 48 hours.