Election Commission Removes District Magistrates in Bengal, Sparks Controversy Over Officer Cadre

Four district magistrates in Bengal were dismissed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday on the grounds that they were not IAS personnel, who are in accordance with central government regulations intended to be appointed as the administrative leaders of their districts.

The decision, which was the first of its kind by the ECI in recent memory, was applauded by a number of top IAS officers in the state. Nonetheless, some officials referred to the removals as "unfair," particularly those employed by the West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS).

"The Election Commission of India (ECI) today issued transfer orders for non-cadre officers who are posted at leadership positions as District Magistrates (DM) and Superintendent of Police (SP) in four states namely Gujarat, Punjab, Odisha, and West Bengal, carrying out its commitment for equal playing fields in the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections 2024. Nirvachan Sadan released a news release on Thursday stating that personnel from the Indian Administrative Service and Indian Police Service had been selected for the positions of DM and SP in the district, respectively.

Among the officers who were transferred were DMs of East Midnapore, Jhargram, East Burdwan, Birbhum, and Tanvir Afzal, as well as Sunil Agarwal, Bidhan Ray, and Purnendu Maji.

Under the condition of anonymity, a senior IAS officer stated that the decision was appropriate because the WBCS officers were not permitted to hold elections for district heads under the current regulations.

The IAS officer remarked, "There is no issue if a promoted IAS officer from the rank of the WBCS conducts the polls. However, all of these officers are WBCS officers here."

According to several state administration sources, the four officers were targeted because to their strong ties to the ruling class.

"In the past, all four officers were accused of showing preference for the ruling party. Even under the Left administration, their relationship with the ruling party is well known within the administration. Many members of the WBCS cadre even believe that their selection as DMs stems only from their support of the ruling party in the elections and other affairs. A senior bureaucrat stated, "The decision to remove them should not be contested on the grounds of fairness."

The association of WBCS officers, however, sharply objected to the measure, claiming it was disrespectful to the 1,800-person cadre.

"The Representation of the People's Act, 1951 does not stipulate that an IAS officer must serve as a district magistrate in order to serve as the district election officer. Rather, it states that a state government posted officer may serve as a district election officer. The WBCS (Executive) Association secretary, Santanu Mukherjee, stated on Thursday that "we have been hurt by the order and have submitted a letter opposing the move to the chief electoral officer (CEO, who is the representative of the ECI in the state) in Calcutta this evening."

The letter from the WBCS (Executive) Association has been forwarded to the ECI, according to sources in the CEO's office in Kolkata.

Many of the state cadre officers may become disinterested in conducting the elections correctly, according to a number of WBCS officers, who said that the action had damaged their feelings.

Over 1,500 WBCS officials are exerting great effort in the field to guarantee a fair and impartial election. It will be challenging for the ECI to conduct the polls correctly if these officials' morale is low, a WBCS officer stated.

Some WBCS officials questioned if IAS personnel alone could achieve the goal of "providing a level playing field during the elections."

Another WBCS officer questioned, "If that is true, then why were so many IAS officers removed on charges of aiding and abetting the ruling party in Bengal during the 2019 Lok Sabha and the 2021 Assembly polls."

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