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Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections 2026, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday wrote a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal regarding the removal of allegedly "compromised and partisan police officers", namely Shantanu Sinha Biswas (Deputy Commissioner of Police Kolkata Police), Inspector-in-Charge Bijitaswa Routh, and Sub Inspector Rahul Amin Ali Shah.
"It has come to notice that Deputy Commissioner of Police Shantanu Sinha Biswas and Bijitaswa Routh (IC), Rahul Amin Ali Shah (SI) of Kolkata Police making an appeal for ensuring the victory of their 'guardian' Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the ruling TMC party at the State Conference of the West Bengal Police Welfare Committee," reads the letter. The letter also mentioned that, "The integrity of the electoral process relies heavily on the neutrality and unbiased functioning of all officials involved, particularly those entrusted with maintaining law and order. In view of the above, I humbly request your office to kindly take appropriate steps without any further delay to ensure that the said officers are transferred out from the State of West Bengal till the conclusion of the electoral process." Earlier in March, BJP wrote to the Chief Election Commissioner, West Bengal, accusing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of delivering inflammatory speeches that undermine the integrity of the ongoing electoral process. Highlighting specific instances of alleged voter intimidation in the complaint, the party stated, "During a public rally at Mainaguri, North Bengal, on 25th March 2026, the Chief Minister reportedly stated that after the elections, the public would be compelled to display posters outside their homes declaring, 'I don't support BJP." The upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections are scheduled in two phases, the voting on April 23 and April 29, while counting will take place on May 4. A primary flashpoint in this election is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which has led to the deletion of over 60 lakh names, triggering widespread protests, legal battles, and allegations from the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), while the BJP frames it as necessary. In the 2021 Assembly elections in the state held in eight phases, the Trinamool Congress recorded a landslide victory with 213 seats amid an intense contest with the BJP, which jumped to 77 seats. Congress and Left Front drew a blank in the last state polls. (ANI)
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