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Key Points

The Election Commission of India is launching a comprehensive review of booth-level officer selections in West Bengal. Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti will lead an investigation into potential selection anomalies affecting approximately 2,000 polling booths. The review will examine how contractual employees were selected without proper authorization from the Chief Electoral Officer. This scrutiny aims to ensure electoral integrity and compliance with established selection guidelines.

Key Points: ECI Probes Bengal BLO Selection Anomalies With Gyanesh Bharti

  • ECI investigating irregularities in BLO selection across Bengal
  • About 2,000 booths have potential selection violations
  • Contractual employees selected without CEO's mandatory concurrence
  • Strict guidelines exist for permanent government employee appointments
2 min read

SIR in Bengal: ECI team to review complaints on BLO selection anomalies

Election Commission team led by Gyanesh Bharti to investigate irregular booth-level officer appointments in West Bengal government

"We will review the selection process and district-level official's role - Gyanesh Bharti, Deputy Election Commissioner"

Kolkata, Oct 5

A team of the Election Commission of India, led by Deputy Election Commissioner Gyanesh Bharti, will review next week the complaints regarding widespread irregularities in the selection of West Bengal government employees as booth-level officers (BLOs), despite them not meeting the selection criteria mandated by the ECI.

The ECI team will also review the role of district-level electoral officials in clearing the faulty selection of state government employees, insiders from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) said.

The review on this specific issue is a part of the overall review for the forthcoming special intensive revision in West Bengal.

The review will be conducted at a meeting chaired by Bharti, which will bring together all top officials from the CEO's office. The meeting will be attended virtually by the District Magistrates (District Election Officers) and their subordinate district-level electoral officials.

The main complaint in BLO selection is that for about 2,000 booths in some districts, contractual state government employees were selected as the BLOs without the necessary concurrence from the CEO's office, which was in direct violation of the ECI-mandated norms for the selection.

As per ECI guidelines, permanent state government employees in the category of Group-C or above and teaching staff in state-run schools should be considered for appointing BLOs.

In case adequate numbers are not available from the Group-C category permanent state government employees and teachers in state-run schools, then only contractual state government employees could be considered for appointment as BLOs, and that too after concurrence from the CEO's office.

The Deputy CEO, accompanied by ECI's Director General (Information Technology) and other senior officials of the Commission, will be reaching Kolkata on the night of October 7, and on the next day, they will conduct the crucial meeting. On October 9, the team of senior ECI officials is expected to visit certain districts and interact directly with the district-level electoral officials.

Recently, West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal had sent a letter to the State Education Department complaining about the reluctance among a section of teaching staff in state-run schools to accept BLO duty, despite a clear instruction from a single-judge bench of the Calcutta High Court.

The CEO's office had also cautioned of disciplinary action against such teachers if they do not join BLO duties after a certain period of time.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
This is exactly why people lose faith in the system. 2000 booths with irregular appointments? That's massive! The district officials who cleared these selections should be held accountable. Democracy deserves better safeguards.
S
Sarah B
While I appreciate ECI's intervention, I wish they'd also address why teachers are reluctant to take up BLO duties. The article mentions disciplinary action, but maybe there are genuine concerns about workload and compensation that need addressing.
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Arjun K
Good move by ECI! BLOs are the backbone of our electoral process at the grassroots level. If their selection itself is compromised, what hope do we have for fair elections? Hope this sets a precedent for other states too 🇮🇳
M
Michael C
The fact that this is happening just before special intensive revision raises eyebrows. Were these appointments made with some ulterior motive? ECI needs to ensure such manipulations don't affect voter registration and future elections.
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Kavya N
As a West Bengal resident, I've seen how political interference affects every aspect of governance. Glad ECI is taking this seriously. The virtual meeting with DMs is a good step - hope they get to the bottom of this mess!

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