Suvendu claims anomalies in ERO selection, seeks ECI’s intervention

The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, on Friday sought the attention of the Election Commission of India (ECI) regarding alleged irregularities in the selection of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) amid indications that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state will start after 15 October.

According to Adhikari, the seniority aspect of bureaucrats was ignored in many cases during the selection of EROs.

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“I urge the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take immediate action to address the numerous anomalies in the appointment of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) across West Bengal. It has come to my attention that many District Magistrates have appointed junior Officers as EROs, bypassing senior West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS)— Executive officers, which is a clear violation of the ECI’s guidelines,” the LoP said in a social media post issued on Friday.

Adhikari had also furnished a list of 226 such EROs, whose selection, according to him, was made ignoring the ECI-mandated guidelines on this count. This malpractice, he added, has undermined the integrity of our electoral process.

Adhikari has pointed out that ECI had emphasised that WBCS cadre officers attaining the ranks of sub-divisional magistrates and rural development officers have to be appointed as EROs.

“I strongly request the ECI to enforce this directive strictly in West Bengal, ensuring widespread corrections and proper implementation to uphold fairness and transparency in our democracy,” the LoP said.

In the letter to Gyanesh Kumar, Chief Election Commissioner of India, Adhikari also accused chief minister Mamata Banerjee of issuing “blatant and audacious threats” to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, a constitutional representative of the Election Commission of India (ECI).

“This is not an isolated incident,” the letter of Mr Adhikari further stated, recalling that on 28 July, during an administrative meeting in Bolpur, Ms Banerjee had allegedly threatened Booth Level Officers (BLOs) — who are state government employees — warning them of “consequences” if they removed any names from the voters’ list.