Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary, DGP changes; Stalin shouts foul

CHENNAI: Ahead of the April 23 elections to the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, the Election Commission of India on Wednesday replaced state chief secretary N Muruganandam with senior bureaucrat M Sai Kumar and DGP (Armed Police, Vigilance and Anti-Corruption) S Davidson Devasirvatham with 1995-batch IPS officer Sandeep Mittal, a decision that drew an angry reaction from the CM MK Stalin.The move comes in the wake of multiple complaints by the opposition, who claimed that the administrative machinery in the state has been working in favor of the DMK government.In an official communication to the chief secretary, EC secretary Lata Tripathi directed the immediate appointment of 1990-batch IAS officer M Sai Kumar as the top bureaucrat in the state. The Election Commission further stipulated that no election-related post shall be allotted to the outgoing officials until the polling process is completed.The committee stressed the urgency of the directive, ordering the changes to be implemented immediately and requiring compliance and accession reports to be submitted by 6 p.m. Wednesday.The European Commission directive makes clear that the transfer is part of preparations for the vote.Meanwhile, Prime Minister Stalin attacked the EC, accusing it of behaving like “a branch of the Bharatiya Janata Party”.He said the DMK’s victory cannot be stopped because of such a move. “Who do you want to help by transferring officials?” Stalin asked at a campaign event in Tiruvannamalai and Kalakurich districts on Wednesday, just hours after the EC issued the order.“Just a few days ago, Election Commission officials visited Chennai and said the law and order situation in TN was very good and the government was fully cooperative. What has changed in a week?” asked the CM.He claimed that the transfers ordered by the poll panel, especially in places like Salem, were orchestrated to benefit AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and the NDA alliance. Salem Collector Brindha Ravi was transferred a day ago and Arun Thamburaj took her place. “Will this help earnings per share?” asked the CM.Stalin added: “Have the chief secretary and attorney general been transferred like this during the Bihar elections? This is a blatant attempt to prevent the DMK from winning but they will fail miserably.”