The West Bengal government has requested the Election Commission of India (EC) to exclude nine Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and eight Indian Police Service (IPS) officers of the state cadre from the list of observers to other states, where assembly elections are due this year.
The request on Thursday came a day after the EC1 named 15 IAS and 10 IPS of West Bengal cadre officers, including state home secretary Jagdish Prasad Meena and Howrah police commissioner Pravin Kumar Tripathi, as poll observers.
“A letter has been sent to the ECI requesting the names of at least nine IAS officers and eight IPS officers to be dropped from the list of observers,” said a Bengal government official.
Assembly elections are due in West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry over the next three months. The ECI deploys IAS and IPS officers from other states to monitor polls.
People aware of the matter said the ECI sent a letter to the West Bengal government in November 2025 requesting updated details of the 1996-2016 batch IAS and IPS officers. Three reminders were sent to the state thereafter.
“The ECI selected the names of 15 IAS and 10 IPS officers despite no response from the state government,” said an ECI official.
The deputation of IAS and IPS officers is the latest flashpoint between the ECI and the West Bengal government. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who has been at loggerheads with the ECI over issues such as the electoral roll Special Intensive Revision, is likely to meet the chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in New Delhi on Monday.