On Wednesday, the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, Manoj Kumar Agarwal, instructed 143 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) to report to work by Thursday at 12 noon, warning that they would lose their jobs immediately if they failed to do the same.
The Election Commission also ruled for a departmental proceeding against them. The list includes officials from Murshidabad, Kolkata, and Cooch Behar.
Notably, many of these BLOs were appointed between April and now. However, many reportedly refused to undergo mandatory training. The Commission had earlier issued them show-cause notices, asking for written explanations. While most complied and returned to duty, some continued to ignore the directive, prompting Wednesday’s tough response from the CEO’s office.
ECI gives strict deadline to Bengal DEOs for talks with political parties
The Election Commission and District Election Officers (DEOs) had a meeting in Kolkata on Wednesday. Ei Samay cited a source who claimed that the meeting took more than three hours, and senior Commission officials were present.
The CEO has also asked all the DEOs to meet with political parties by Thursday so that they can negotiate on the protocol and coordination of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
ECI's twin moves to secure Bengal electoral roll revision
Notably, the Election Commission recently ruled to install special camps in some areas of deluge-marred North Bengal where the voters lost their documents. The issuance of duplicate papers will be done so they can participate in the revision process of the electoral exercise. This ruling is especially applicable to Darjeeling, Alipurduar, and Cooch Behar districts.
The Commission sources also claimed the preparation of SIR forms is already underway, and some districts have even completed the printing process. Officials hope to wrap up the enumeration form work within the next two days.
So far, the CEO’s office has received formal complaints against two BLOs, both of whom were found to be active members of political parties and panchayat office-bearers. They have since been removed from their positions by the Election Commission.
