West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Agarwal is considering civil and criminal defamation proceedings against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra over allegations she levelled against him in connection with the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in the state.
Agarwal has sought legal opinion following a social media post by Moitra in which she named him and senior bureaucrat Subrata Gupta as the “2 biggest architects of Bengal SIR” and accused them of committing widespread illegalities during the exercise. The allegations have not been established by a court or other competent authority.
Mahua targets officials
Moitra posted photographs of Agarwal and Gupta while directly targeting them over their alleged roles in the electoral roll revision.
“2 biggest architects of Bengal SIR — committed every illegality under the planet. Subrata Kaku & Manoj Uncle — watch out. India is coming for you next. Bachh nahi paoge,” she wrote.
The remarks prompted Agarwal to consider legal remedies. He has questioned what material or documents formed the basis of the allegations and indicated that legal advice was being taken on whether the statements constituted defamation.
No defamation case had been filed at the time of the latest reports. The Chief Secretary is currently considering legal action.
Chief Secretary defends exercise
Agarwal has previously defended the manner in which the SIR was conducted in West Bengal and maintained that officials performed their responsibilities impartially.
He has said that cases involving voters categorised as absent, deceased, shifted or duplicate were processed as part of the revision exercise and that the changes in the electoral rolls were accounted for under the prescribed procedure.
Moitra and the TMC have, however, been among the most vocal critics of the SIR process and have repeatedly questioned voter deletions and the Election Commission’s handling of electoral rolls.
The Election Commission has defended the revision exercise and maintained that its purpose is to ensure the inclusion of eligible electors while removing ineligible or duplicate entries.
SIR at centre of political battle
The confrontation comes amid a wider political dispute over the Election Commission and electoral roll revisions in several states.
Moitra has repeatedly targeted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the SIR process. Last month, she submitted a complaint to Delhi Police seeking an FIR against Kumar over allegations concerning decisions taken by the Election Commission during the exercise.
Her allegations against the CEC and other officials remain allegations. The Election Commission has disputed claims of wrongdoing and maintained that its decisions were taken within the legal and constitutional framework governing electoral rolls.
The Supreme Court has also dealt extensively with challenges to SIR exercises. In May, it upheld the Election Commission’s SIR exercise in Bihar while examining questions surrounding the poll panel’s powers and safeguards against wrongful exclusion.
Fresh confrontation
The latest dispute is unusual because it pits a ruling-party MP in West Bengal against the state’s top bureaucrat over an electoral exercise that has already generated intense political and legal contestation.
Agarwal’s consideration of civil as well as criminal defamation proceedings could move the disagreement from political statements and social media into a legal forum, where the specific allegations and the material supporting them could come under scrutiny.
For now, however, the matter remains at the stage of seeking legal opinion. Moitra has made serious allegations against the officials involved in Bengal’s SIR, while Agarwal has challenged their basis and is considering his legal options.