The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday, in a letter to the Kolkata Police, flagged a security breach at the office of the Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, on 24 November amid the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) process in the state and sought a report within 48 hours.
The poll body directed police authorities to take all possible measures to ensure the safety and security of officers and staff posted at the CEO's office, at their residences and while commuting to and fro.
“The Commission further directs that adequate security classification shall be done on account of sensitivity involved due to SIR activities and forthcoming elections in the State and ensure that no untoward incident occurs again,” the EC mentioned in the letter.
In the letter, EC secretary Sujeet Kumar Mishra said the existing security at the office of Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal appeared to be inadequate to handle the situation.
What happened at the West Bengal CEO's office?
Alleging "excessive work pressure" and "unmanageable workload" due to the SIR of electoral rolls, a section of booth-level officers (BLOs) held a 30-hour demonstration outside the CEO's office till Tuesday evening, 25 November, as mentioned in a report by news wire PTI.
SIR in Bengal
Earlier today, the poll body said that approximately 14 lakh SIR enumeration forms have been identified as “uncollectable” in West Bengal.
An official said that these voters were either absentee, duplicate, deceased, or had permanently moved. “As of Tuesday noon, the number stood at 13.92 lakh,” he mentioned. “We expect this figure to continue rising daily as more updates roll in.” This figure rose sharply from 10.33 lakh on Monday evening, reported PTI.
EC to meet TMC delegation
On Tuesday, 25 November, the Election Commission sent a letter to the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for a meeting on Friday after the Mamata Banerjee-led party sought time with the poll panel.
In a letter to party chief Mamata Banerjee, the Election Commission stated that a Trinamool delegation comprising its authorised representative and four others can meet its top brass at 11 AM on Friday, as per reports from news agencies.
The scheduled interaction is set to happen days after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, demanding his “immediate intervention” into two recent issues. In another letter dated 20 November, Mamata Banerjee had requested the CEC to immediately halt the SIR exercise in the state, claiming it as “chaotic, coercive and dangerous”.
