After poll dates, EC rejigs Bengal’s bureaucracy and top cops; chief secretary, DGP among those replaced

KOLKATA: Hours after the assembly poll dates were announced and the model code of conduct came into force, Election Commission initiated an overhaul of Bengal's top bureaucracy and police brass on Sunday night and Monday morning, changing the chief secretary, home secretary, director-general of police and the commissioner of Kolkata Police.

In an order issued late on Sunday, EC appointed Dushyant Nariala as Bengal's chief secretary, replacing Nandini Chakravorty. In the same order, EC replaced Jagdish Prasad Meena with Sanghamitra Ghosh as home secretary.




TOI reported on the EC order in brief in its late edition on Monday morning.

The poll panel's order said Chakravorty and Meena had been barred from all work related to the upcoming polls. Chakravorty, who took over as chief secretary on Jan 1, was the first woman appointed to the post in Bengal. She was also the state's first woman home secretary.

Nariala and Ghosh both assumed their new responsibilities by 3pm on Monday, the deadline set by EC. The Bengal govt did not assign any new posts to Chakravorty and Meena till Monday evening.

This was the first time Bengal's top bureaucrat was changed before an election.

Even before the dust could settle on the late-night order, EC on Monday morning ordered a reshuffle in the top ranks of police.

In compliance with the directive, Siddh Nath Gupta has taken over as DG & IGP, replacing Peeyush Pandey. Natarajan Ramesh Babu is the new DG, correctional services, and Ajay Mukund Ranade has taken over as ADG & IGP (law and order), replacing Vineet Goyal. Ajay Kumar Nand has replaced Supratim Sarkar as the commissioner of Kolkata Police. In a letter to the outgoing chief secretary, EC said the overhaul was being ordered following a review of poll preparedness.

As in the case of the transferred IAS officers, EC asked the state to send a compliance report by 3pm on Monday in regard to the changes in the police top brass. The officers removed from their posts will not be given any poll-related work.

Sarkar to head CID, Pandey at helm of security

The state govt immediately appointed Pandey as director, security, a post he held before becoming DGP on Feb 1. Sarkar will helm the state CID and Goyal will head the state Intelligence Branch. Making way for Sarkar, ADG (CID) Laxmi Narayan Meena will take over as ADG, correctional services.

Changes in the police set-up during an election season are not unprecedented. During the 2016 assembly polls, EC had replaced Rajeev Kumar with Soumen Mitra as the commissioner of Kolkata Police. Before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the commission had replaced Anuj Sharma with Rajesh Kumar as the Kolkata top cop.

Since the 2016 assembly elections, CM Mamata Banerjee has consistently brought back transferred officers to their previous posts after the polls were over.

Nariala, the new chief secretary, is from the 1993 batch IAS. He has served as additional chief secretary in charge of the north Bengal development department and also helmed the disaster management and civil defence department.

Ghosh was the secretary in the state department of women and child development and social welfare before being named home secretary. She has also served as the district magistrate of South 24 Parganas and Howrah.

According to election rules, EC is vested with special powers when the model code of conduct is in force and can order the transfer of state bureaucrats and police officers. Earlier, the commission used to seek a panel of three names from state govts to choose its pick for the state's top bureaucrat or top cop.