Kolkata, April 11 (NationPress) - The Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, on Saturday called on the Election Commission of India (ECI) to investigate the alleged hiring of contractual personnel as sector officers and assistants in the Kasba Assembly Constituency located in South 24 Parganas district, just ahead of the pivotal two-phase Assembly elections scheduled for next month.

The polling in Kasba is set for the second phase on April 29.

In a statement shared on his official social media account on Saturday morning, the LoP asserted that the hiring of contractual staff for such a vital election-related role represents a blatant and calculated move by the district administration of South 24 Parganas to undermine the democratic process in the Kasba Assembly Constituency.

He contended that the directive for appointing these contractual staff as sector officers/assistants originated from the Returning Officer for the Assembly constituency, Purnima Dey, a West Bengal Civil Service (Executive) cadre officer, and is a well-planned conspiracy to employ 'partisan contractual staff' in capacities typically reserved for permanent government employees.

The LoP also attached the order for the appointment of these contractual workers to his statement.

“The individuals mentioned in the attached order (Sector Assistants) are reportedly contractual employees of the ‘ISGPP Cell’ under the panchayat and rural development department, currently associated with the South 24 Parganas Zilla Parishad. The Election Commission’s own directives strictly forbid the assignment of contractual staff to such sensitive electoral duties, given their lack of accountability and permanence,” he emphasized.

He further accused the Returning Officer of Kasba of utilizing fabricated titles such as 'sector assistant' and 'assistant sector officer,' which are not recognized within the standard election hierarchy established by the ECI.

According to him, it is clear that these titles have been concocted to evade scrutiny and deploy contractual workers.

“In prior orders, these same individuals were designated as 'sector officers.' After likely objections were raised, the RO skillfully altered their title to 'sector assistant,' while retaining them in the same roles to advance the ruling party's interests on the ground,” he claimed.

Adhikari also pointed out that this constitutes a direct violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and poses a serious threat to the integrity of free and fair elections.

“By placing contractual staff in charge of polling sectors, which are heavily reliant on the state government's whims for their livelihoods, the biased administration is essentially handing over the election machinery to the ruling party,” Adhikari remarked.

In conclusion, he urged the ECI to intervene and remove these contractual staff from their electoral responsibilities.