EC now transfers 13 IAS and 20 IPS officers to Bangladesh

KOLKATA: The Election Commission (EC) has transferred 60 senior IAS and IPS officers to Bengal within three days of announcing the poll date on March 15. Seventeen of them were appointed as election observers in other states.In the latest order since the Model Code of Conduct came into effect, the EC on Wednesday transferred 13 IAS officers and 20 IPS officers serving as district election officers (DEOs). The DEOs for these 13 constituencies include Kolkata North and Kolkata South constituencies.

Two IPS officers – Murlidhar Sharma and Waquar Raza – have been appointed as poll observers in Tamil Nadu. Sharma is Bidnagar city police chief and Raza took over as Siliguri police chief a few days ago. Five IAS officers, JP Meena (who was removed as home secretary on Sunday), Antara Acharya, Parwez Ahmed Siddiqui, P Mohan Gandhi and Priyanka Singla, were sent to other states as poll observers.While government staff typically move ahead of a vote, the sheer number of moves ahead of the 2026 vote makes the current transfers unprecedented, officials said. Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to CEC Gyanesh Kumar, asking why the EC had bypassed the customary practice of seeking a three-member panel from the state government to fill every post affected by transfers.