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Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saugata Roy on Tuesday raised concerns over the West Bengal government's decision to appoint former Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal as the state's Chief Secretary. The senior leader suggested that the move lacks transparency, given Agarwal's recent role in overseeing the electoral process in the state.
Speaking to ANI, TMC MP Saugata Roy said, "I have nothing personal against him, but it is strange and surprising that the man who was in charge of conducting the elections and looking after the SIR has been made the Chief Secretary. This gives rise to the question of whether it is a reward for having the election in favour of the BJP. The government should clarify this..." Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, strongly criticised the newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in West Bengal after the State Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Kumar Agarwal was appointed as the Chief Secretary. Sharing an X post, the Congress MP once again alleged a collusion between the Election Commission and the BJP. Rahul Gandhi wrote, "In BJP-EC's 'Chor Baazar' (Thieves' Market) - the bigger the theft, the bigger the reward." Earlier on Monday, the BJP government appointed West Bengal CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal as the Chief Secretary. "The Governor is pleased to appoint Manoj Rumar Agarwal, (AS (WB:1990), Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, and ex officio Additional Chief Secretary, Home and Hill Affairs (Election) Department, Govt. of West Bengal, as Chief Secretary to the Government of West Bengal until further order(s)," a notification from the West Bengal government read. In the run-up to the State Assembly elections, the TMC and Congress had alleged that the ECI was working on the behest of the BJP in West Bengal. The stand-off between the TMC and the ECI over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll made several headlines. The 2026 Assembly election results marked a decisive mandate for the BJP, registering a significant surge, winning 206 seats in the 294-member Assembly, a major shift in a state where it had earlier secured 77 seats in the previous election. The Trinamool Congress (TMC), which had won 212 seats in the last Assembly polls, finished a distant second with 80 seats. This ended TMC's 15-year rule in the State. Congress was restricted to just two seats. Following the victory, Suvendu Adhikari took the oath as the ninth chief minister of West Bengal. The oath of office was administered by Governor RN Ravi at a grand swearing-in ceremony in Kolkata attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministers and senior BJP leaders. (ANI)
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