Questioning the manner in which West Bengal’s top administrative and police officers were transferred within 24 hours of the declaration of the Assembly polls, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the action undermines “co-operative federalism”.
In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Mamata Banerjee stated that such sweeping transfers were done without any “reasons and without any allegation of violation, misconduct or lapse.”
EC removed Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty and replaced her with Dushyant Nariala. Similarly, the state Home Secretary, Jagdish Prasad Meena, was replaced by Sanghamitra Ghosh. The poll body also removed Director General of Police (DGP) Peeyush Pandey and replaced him with 1992-batch IPS officer Siddh Nath Gupta. Ajay Kumar Nand was appointed the new police commissioner of Kolkata, replacing Supratim Sarkar.
“Such sweeping transfers have been affected without any cogent reasons and without any allegation of violation, misconduct or lapse in relation to the conduct of elections,” Banerjee’s letter, dated March 16, read.
“The Election Commission of India is vested with the authority to transfer or posting of civil and police officers who are engaged or deemed to be engaged in election-related duties. Historically, during the previous elections, the Commission, while exercising these powers, has consistently consulted State Government as a matter of constitutional propriety and administrative convention within our federal framework,” she added.
The Bengal chief minister said that in practice, the Commission would request the state government to furnish a panel of three officers, from among whom it would select an officer to fill the vacancy arising from any contemplated transfer.’ She said it is “a matter of deep concern and surprise” that the heads of the administrative machinery in Bengal have been removed within hours of the press conference announcing the Assembly polls.
“This has been done in an arbitrary manner, without seeking a panel of officers from the State Government and without adhering to the established convention that has guided ECI-State institutional functioning during previous elections. It also undermines the spirit of cooperative federalism and principles of our democratic polity, which form a basic feature of our constitutional governance,” she said in her letter.
“The Election Commission of India, as a constitutional authority of the highest standing, is expected not only to exercise its powers but also to uphold the spirit and values inherent in India’s federal structure.’
“In view of the above, I would request the Commission to kindly refrain from adopting such unilateral measures in the future, as they risk diluting the long-standing legacy, credibility and institutional integrity of the Election Commission of India.”