The Election Commission on Sunday asked the Bengal government to send a list of officers-in-charge and inspectors-in-charge of police stations who “may not be able to conduct a free and fair election”, a senior police officer told Metro on Monday.

The state police were asked to submit the list by Monday night. “We have been asked to prepare a list of officers-in-charge who we think are incapable of conducting a free and fair election,” said an officer of the rank of deputy inspector general of police.

An officer posted as superintendent of police in a district in south Bengal said it was “difficult to discriminate on such grounds”.

“How can we pre-empt that an officer is incapable of conducting free and fair elections? If there is a history of violence or law-and-order problems during past elections under an officer’s jurisdiction, that could be a criterion. Otherwise, it may be unfair to choose someone based on personal whim,” the officer said.

The EC had earlier sought a list of officers who were in charge of police stations during the 2021 and 2024 elections in areas where poll-related violence had been reported.

The poll panel has so far removed 31 IPS officers, including the director-general of police, police commissioners and other senior officers directly involved in the electoral process.

Of the 31 officers, the EC initially wanted 15 to be sent to Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Nagaland as election observers. The next day, five of them were asked to stay back.

Two of the remaining 10 officers have applied for exemption from observer duty on personal grounds. The EC had not responded to their applications till Monday evening.

“During earlier elections, we have seen that the EC acts only when there is a complaint or an incident in an officer’s jurisdiction. This time, transfers began within hours of the model code of conduct coming into force, even without any complaint or incident,” said a senior bureaucrat.

On March 15, hours after the elections were announced and the model code came into effect, the EC removed the state chief secretary and the home secretary in a late-night order.

The latest directive — asking for a list of officers “incapable” of ensuring free and fair elections — has left many senior officers uneasy.

“I am still not sure how to prepare such a list based on that criterion,” said an SP of a district in north Bengal.

FIR directive

The EC has also issued another direction to superintendents of police and commissioners of police, asking them not to register FIRs against central forces personnel “without preliminary enquiry”.

“Instruction to CP/SP that without preliminary enquiry, no FIR to be lodged in bonafide action/discharge of official duties by CAPF,” said a communication sent to all police chiefs last week.

However, a senior police officer pointed out that, under the rulebook, a preliminary enquiry is permitted only for offences attracting punishment between three and seven years under Section 173(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.

“For offences carrying higher punishment, registration of an FIR is mandatory,” the police officer added.

Another officer questioned why such a provision should apply only to central forces and not to state police personnel, who will also be on election duty.