The Election Commission removed Cooch Behar police chief Abhishek Gupta on Tuesday, barely 40 hours before voting and just over 48 hours after BJP leader Mukul Roy threatened action in the presence of Prime Narendra Modi against the IPS officer and asked him to “shed his uniform”.
The poll panel has asked the state to replace Gupta — accused by Roy of “creating problems” in organising Modi’s Cooch Behar rally on Sunday — with Amit Singh, a Bengal cadre IPS now posted as an observer in Bihar’s Araria.
“Abhishek Gupta, the police chief here, should shed his uniform. He has not cooperated with us for this (Modi’s) meeting. I want to tell you Abhishek Gupta I will be in politics for another 10 years. I shall see how big an SP you are,” Roy had said on from Modi’s dais.
Gupta’s exit is the fifth in days after the poll panel removed the police chiefs of Calcutta and Salt Lake, along with SPs of Birbhum and Diamond Harbour.
The Cooch Behar action stood out as officials couldn’t recall an instance in recent memory where an SP had been shunted out so close to polls and the replacement virtually parachuted from another state where the officer was an observer. A source said special central police observer Vivek Dubey was expected in town on Wednesday.
Nabanna sources said Gupta’s removal could lead to problems. “From Wednesday, officials will collect EVMs, other materials and reach booths along with security forces. It is tough for a new SP to handle all these processes properly as he was not involved so far,” said a bureaucrat.
Trinamul questioned the poll panel’s action. “The likes of Mukul Roy and (Bengal BJP chief) Dilip Ghosh issue statements. The commission removes officials. The commission must decide whether this appears impartial,” said Trinamul secretary-general Partha Chatterjee.
Trinamul wrote to chief election commissioner Sunil Arora calling the decision “arbitrary, motivated and biased” and demanded a review. A Trinamul team, led by its Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien, is slated to meet Arora on Wednesday.
“The Election Commission should not bow down to the power of the central government and should not act as a mouthpiece of the BJP,” the letter, signed by O’Brien, stated.
The BJP, which had complained against Gupta, welcomed the action. “The SP was removed to ensure an unbiased police,” BJP national secretary Rahul Sinha said.
