Election Commission Initiates Major Overhaul of West Bengal's Top Administration
In a significant move following the announcement of assembly poll dates, the Election Commission has executed a comprehensive reshuffle of West Bengal's highest-ranking bureaucrats and police officials. The changes, implemented on Sunday night and Monday morning, came into effect immediately as the model code of conduct was enforced across the state.
Top Bureaucratic Changes Ordered
Through a late Sunday order, the Election Commission appointed Dushyant Nariala as West Bengal's new chief secretary, replacing Nandini Chakravorty. In the same directive, Sanghamitra Ghosh was named home secretary, taking over from Jagdish Prasad Meena. Both Chakravorty and Meena have been barred from all election-related duties.
This marks the first instance in Bengal's history where the state's top bureaucrat has been changed prior to an election. Chakravorty, who assumed the chief secretary role on January 1, was Bengal's first woman appointed to this position and had previously served as the state's first woman home secretary.
Nariala and Ghosh assumed their new responsibilities by the 3 PM Monday deadline set by the Election Commission. The state government had not assigned any new posts to Chakravorty and Meena by Monday evening.
Police Brass Reshuffled
Before the bureaucratic changes could settle, the Election Commission ordered a parallel reshuffle in the state's police leadership on Monday morning. Siddh Nath Gupta has taken over as Director General and Inspector General of Police, replacing Peeyush Pandey.
Other key police appointments include:
- Natarajan Ramesh Babu as the new Director General of Correctional Services
- Ajay Mukund Ranade as Additional Director General and Inspector General (Law and Order), replacing Vineet Goyal
- Ajay Kumar Nand as Commissioner of Kolkata Police, replacing Supratim Sarkar
The Election Commission directed the state government to submit a compliance report by 3 PM Monday regarding these police transfers. All officers removed from their positions will be excluded from election-related work.
State Government's Response and Historical Context
The state government promptly reassigned the transferred officers to alternative positions. Pandey was appointed as Director of Security, a role he previously held before becoming DGP on February 1. Sarkar will lead the state Criminal Investigation Department, while Goyal will head the state Intelligence Branch.
To accommodate Sarkar's appointment, Additional Director General Laxmi Narayan Meena will take over as ADG of Correctional Services.
Police reshuffles during election seasons are not unprecedented in West Bengal. During the 2016 assembly polls, the Election Commission replaced Rajeev Kumar with Soumen Mitra as Kolkata Police Commissioner. Before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the commission similarly replaced Anuj Sharma with Rajesh Kumar as the city's top police officer.
Since the 2016 assembly elections, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has consistently reinstated transferred officers to their previous positions after polls conclude.
Background of New Appointees
Dushyant Nariala, a 1993-batch Indian Administrative Service officer, has served as Additional Chief Secretary overseeing the North Bengal Development Department and previously led the Disaster Management and Civil Defence Department.
Sanghamitra Ghosh was serving as Secretary in the state Department of Women and Child Development and Social Welfare before her appointment as home secretary. Her previous roles include serving as District Magistrate of South 24 Parganas and Howrah districts.
Election Commission's Authority
Under election rules, the Election Commission possesses special powers when the model code of conduct is active, enabling it to order transfers of state bureaucrats and police officers. Historically, the commission would request a panel of three names from state governments to select the state's top bureaucrat or police chief.
In a letter to the outgoing chief secretary, the Election Commission stated that the overhaul was ordered following a comprehensive review of poll preparedness in West Bengal.
