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Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
EC suspends 4 officers for doctoring Bengal poll roll
NEW DELHI: Taking serious note of the "wrongful" additions being made to the West Bengal electoral roll by some of its field officers, Election Commission on Tuesday ordered immediate suspension of EROs and assistant EROs of Baruipur Purba assembly constituency (AC) and Moyna AC. It also directed that an FIR be filed against them for "criminal misconduct". In a letter sent to the West Bengal chief secretary on Tuesday, the poll panel said it has "taken serious note of the grave lapses and has decided the officers shall be placed under suspension for their failure in supervising the election related work... and suitable disciplinary proceedings initiated against them without any delay". The action against West Bengal civil service officers and EROs of Baruipur Purba AC and Moyna AC, Debottam Dutta Choudhury and Biplab Sarkar, respectively, and assistant EROs Tathagat Mondal and Sudipta Das, came after the state chief electoral officer (CEO) reported that they had been disposing of applications for inclusion in the electoral roll without proper verification or allowing a window for claims and objections. They also violated the policy of data security by sharing their login credentials for the electoral roll database with unauthorised persons. EC has ordered lodging of an FIR against casual data entry operator Surojit Halder. Significantly, the CEO has reported to EC similar lapses by other West Bengal officials involved in preparation, revision and correction of the electoral roll. Action against these erring officers would follow, said an EC source. The rush on part of certain EROs and AEROs in West Bengal to arbitrarily add names to the state's roll comes even as EC prepares to order special intensive revision of its roll, on the lines of the exercise in Bihar. A source indicated that the hurry to add electors - many suspected to be Bangladeshi settlers - ahead of assembly polls next year may be an effort to ensure their names are on the roll before the enumeration phase of SIR gets underway. As per Section 32(1) of the R P Act, 1950, any ERO or assistant ERO guilty of any act or omission in breach of official duty, shall be punishable with a minimum jail term of three months, which can extend to two years with fine.
India Today
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Electoral roll scandal: Poll body cracks down on Bengal officials over fake voters
The Election Commission of India on Tuesday suspended four officials and announced that an FIR would be lodged against them for allegedly sharing login credentials of the electoral roll database with "unauthorised persons" and for the "wrongful addition of names to the electoral rolls" in two assembly constituencies in West alleged breach took place in Baruipur Purba constituency of South 24 Parganas and the Moyna constituency in Purba Medinipur the lapse was brought to the notice of central poll body during a general revision exercise of the voter list in the state, it ordered the immediate suspension of four officials -- Debottam Dutta Choudhury (Electoral Registration Officer), Tathagata Mandal (Assistant Electoral Registration Officer), Biplab Sarkar (Electoral Registration Officer) and Sudipta Das (Assistant Electoral Registration Officer). 'The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal had forwarded a report on July 29 informing about the wrongful addition of names in the electoral rolls by EROs and AEROs of Baruipur Purba and Moyna assembly constituencies. It has been reported that the said officers have not only failed to perform duty as ERO and AERO while disposing off the applications but also violated the policy of data security while sharing their login credentials of the electoral roll database with unauthorised persons,' the central body informed the West Bengal chief central poll also stated that an FIR is also being filed against data entry operator Surojeet the development, BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya slammed the ruling Trinamool Congress, alleging that the voter lists were being tampered with to serve political interests.- EndsTune InMust Watch
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
ECI suspends four West Bengal electoral officers for voter list tamperings, orders probe
NEW DELHI: Election Commission of India on Tuesday suspended four West Bengal government officers for allegedly including wrongful names in the voters list and compromising data security, officials said. The poll panel also asked the West Bengal Chief Secretary to lodge FIRs against the four officers under provisions of the election laws. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has initiated action against four West Bengal election officials following a Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) report exposing unauthorized inclusions in electoral rolls of Baruipur Purba and Moyna constituencies. In its letter to the Chief Secretary - a copy obtained by this newspaper - the ECI cited the CEO's findings of irregularities committed by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant EROs. The officers - Debottam Dutta Choudhury (ERO), Tathagata Mondal (AERO), Biplab Sarkar (ERO), and Sudipta Das (AERO) were responsible for preparing, revising, and correcting electoral rolls. The ECI directed that "suitable disciplinary proceedings" be initiated against them and FIRs lodged for actions amounting to "criminal misconduct." An FIR was also recommended against casual data entry operator Surojit Halder. The discrepancies surfaced during a sample check of voter application forms (Form 6) by the West Bengal Election Commission. The ECI noted that the officers violated due procedure, warranting penalties under Section 32(1) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950. Following the CEO's orders, the District Election Officer (DEO) must form a senior officials' team to scrutinice all voter forms processed in the past year and submit a report by August 14, 2025. The ECI instructed the Chief Secretary to ensure strict compliance and submit an action-taken report "at the earliest." The move comes amid Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's opposition to the ECI's push for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state's electoral rolls.
