4 days before polls, EC shunts two cops on Suvendu turf

Kolkata: The EC on Sunday removed the SDPOs of Haldia and Contai in East Midnapur district, just four days before the first phase of assembly elections on April 23.East Midnapur, Suvendu Adhikari's turf, will go to the polls in the first phase.Atanu Ghoshal, a WBPS officer, currently attached to the state police's special task force (STF), has been posted as SDPO of Contai. Alok Kumar, a 2023-batch IPS officer, has been appointed as the new SDPO of Haldia.The EC directed the state govt to implement the changes by 5 pm on April 19.Earlier, on Friday, the EC removed Bidhannagar City Police commissioner Murlidhar Sharma and appointed Tripurari Atharva in his place.Notably, the Commission also carried out key reshuffles in the Kolkata Police last week. Soma Das Mitra, DIG of CID, has been appointed joint commissioner (crime) while Sudip Sarkar has taken charge as joint commissioner (headquarters). Debasmita Das has been posted as joint commissioner (intelligence).Similar action was taken earlier in Murshidabad's Beldanga, where SDPO Uttam Garai was removed and Anandajit Hore was appointed in his place.Since the announcement of polls on March 15, the EC has transferred around 550 civil and police officers across Bengal in its attempt to ensure free, fair and peace-ful elections. Get real-time updates and result insights on the CBSE 12 Result 2026.