KOLKATA: Booth-level officers in over 2, 000 booths in different districts of West Bengal might be replaced shortly, following severe violations of the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s directives regarding the criteria for BLRO appointment.
An insider from the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) stated that the District Magistrates concerned, who are also District Election Officers for the respective districts where these 2, 000 booths have been identified, have already been directed by the CEO’s office to submit detailed reports on the anomalies.
“Once the individual reports from the District Magistrates are available, then the process of replacing the irregular appointments will start strictly following the ECI-set guidelines on BLO appointments. Under any circumstance, the replacement procedure will be completed before the beginning of the ECI-proposed special intensive revision in the state, " a CEO office insider said.
As per the ECI guidelines, there should be a pattern for appointment for BLO appointments that is uniform for all Indian states.
First, the permanent state government employees in the category of Group-C or above and teaching staff in state-run schools should be considered for appointments of BLOs.
In case adequate numbers are not available from the Group-C category permanent state government employees and teachers in state-run schools are not available, only then, contractual state government employees could be considered for appointment as BLOs.
However, according to the CEO’s office insider, each appointment of contractual staff as a BLO has to be justified from the district level, and concurrence for the same should be granted from the CEO’s office.