‘In the dead of night...’: TMC MPs stage Rajya Sabha walkout over ECI’s Bengal reshuffle

TMC MP Derek O'Brien led the walkout from the Upper House of Parliament, accusing the poll body of misusing its powers under the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) to control the state administration.

“In the dead of night, the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary and Home Secretary of Bengal were removed by the Election Commission,” O’Brien said.

“EC has all the power to do it. They can misuse their power. I am wearing a white shirt; but they have the power to say it is not white, it’s a blue shirt,” he added.

Late on Sunday night, the ECI removed Nandini Chakraborty as Chief Secretary of West Bengal and Jagdish Prasad Meena as Home Secretary.

Chakraborty was replaced by Dushyant Nariala, while Sanghamitra Ghosh was appointed Principal Secretary, Home and Hill Affairs in place of Meena.

The poll body also barred Chakraborty and Meena from holding any election-related posts until the completion of the Assembly polls.

As the day progressed, the ECI ordered a sweeping reshuffle in the police leadership of West Bengal.

The poll body appointed Siddh Nath Gupta (IPS-1992) as Director General and Inspector General of Police (DG & IGP), Natarajan Ramesh Babu (IPS-1991) as Director General, Correctional Services, Ajay Mukund Ranade (IPS-1995) as ADG & IGP (Law and Order), and Ajay Kumar Nand (IPS-1996) as Commissioner of Police, Kolkata.

The ECI directed that the orders be implemented with immediate effect and asked for a compliance report on the officers’ joining by 3 pm on March 16, 2026.

On Sunday, the Election Commission of India announced a two-phase Assembly election in West Bengal, one of the states going to the polls this year.

Voting in West Bengal will be held on April 23 and April 29, while the results for all states will be declared on May 4.

Meanwhile, questions continue to linger over adjudicated cases under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, as judicial officers in West Bengal and neighbouring states are still verifying around 60 lakh forms.

In its last hearing, the Supreme Court of India directed the formation of an appellate bench to hear appeals against deletions from the adjudicated cases.

The poll announcement has further complicated the situation, raising questions over whether the supplementary SIR list can be published before the nomination filing deadline.