BJP trying to capture Bengal, not win it: Mamata on ECI transfer orders

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday escalated her confrontation with the Election Commission of India (ECI), writing to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and alleging that recent large-scale transfers of officials undermine administrative neutrality ahead of the Assembly elections.

In her letter, Banerjee described the reshuffle of senior officers as “arbitrary and unprecedented”, saying it had been carried out without consultation, stated reasons, or any allegation of misconduct.

“The large-scale transfer of senior officials… seriously disrupts administration and raises questions about institutional neutrality,” she said.

Her intervention follows a series of decisions by the ECI ordering the transfer or removal of top officials in West Bengal, including the chief secretary, home secretary, director-general of police and the Kolkata Police commissioner. A subsequent round of changes saw two secretaries moved out as observers and 18 officers — 13 IAS and five IPS — assigned to key poll-related roles outside the state.

Banerjee has consistently argued that the scale and timing of these moves are unusual. In a separate post on X earlier in the day, she claimed more than 50 senior officials had been removed even before formal notification of the elections, calling it “political interference of the highest order”.

She also reiterated her political charge against the BJP, alleging that the party was seeking to rely on institutions rather than electoral support. “Having failed to win the trust of Bengal’s people, the BJP is now attempting to capture the state through coercion, intimidation, manipulation and the misuse of institutions,” she said.

In her letter, Banerjee linked the transfers to broader concerns around the electoral process, including the ongoing revision of rolls. She described the special intensive revision (SIR) exercise as “flawed” and noted that supplementary electoral rolls had not yet been published despite directions from the Supreme Court.

“At a time when the flawed SIR process continues… such moves only deepen uncertainty and hinder citizens’ rights,” she wrote.

The chief minister further warned that the ECI’s actions risked undermining “democratic principles and cooperative federalism”, and urged the poll body to “desist from such unilateral decisions” and ensure “fairness, transparency, and the rights of the people”.

Earlier, Banerjee had also questioned what she termed inconsistencies in the ECI’s approach, pointing out that some officers removed from their posts were subsequently assigned election duties as observers.

The Trinamool Congress has framed the developments as evidence of “systematic politicisation of institutions”, while the BJP has not formally responded to the latest allegations.

Banerjee also raised broader political questions, asking why the BJP was “so desperate” and accusing it of targeting Bengal and its people. “I stand in complete solidarity with every officer of the Government of West Bengal,” she added, asserting that the state would “resist” any attempt to impose control through non-electoral means.