ECI seeks action taken report from Bengal DEOs over voter enrolment irregularities

Kolkata, Jan 5 (IANS) The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday sought action taken reports (ATRs) from the district magistrates, who also function as district electoral officers (DEOs), of South 24 Parganas and East Midnapore districts of West Bengal on the implementation of its recent directive to register FIRs against four electoral officers accused of irregularities in voter enrolment in two Assembly constituencies.

On January 2, the ECI directed the DEO of South 24 Parganas district to register FIRs against the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) of Baruipur East Assembly constituency, Debottam Dutta Chowdhury, and the Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) of the same constituency, Tathagata Mandal.

On the same day, the ECI also instructed the DEO of East Midnapore district to register FIRs against the ERO of Moyna Assembly constituency, Biplob Sarkar, and the AERO of that constituency, Sudipta Das.

“Almost 72 hours have elapsed since the Commission issued the order, but the two DEOs concerned are yet to implement it. Therefore, on Monday, the Commission directed the DEOs of South 24 Parganas and East Midnapore to submit an action taken report to the ECI at the earliest,” an insider in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), West Bengal, told IANS.

To recall, in August last year, instructions were issued by the ECI headquarters in New Delhi to the West Bengal government to suspend the four electoral officers and also to register FIRs against them.

However, the West Bengal government partially implemented the directive. While the four officers were suspended, FIRs were not registered against them. In addition, a contractual data entry operator was also relieved of dutyThe four officers were accused of tampering with the voters’ list. Based on this allegation, the ECI had directed that all five individuals be suspended and that FIRs be lodged against them.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had then criticised the ECI’s directive, accusing the poll body of being the “bonded labour of the BJP”, and asserted that her government would not take action against its employees.

Subsequently, on January 2, the Commission, through the CEO’s office, again directed the two DEOs concerned to register FIRs against the two EROs and the two AEROs.

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