Rahul Gandhi's ‘thieves market’ jibe after Suvendu Adhikari appoints Bengal EC official as chief secretary

RAhul indira nehru gandhi on tues launched a vituperative assail on the freshly elected BJP government in West Bengal over the appointment of former chief electoral officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal as the state's new chief secretary, alleging a nexus between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Election Commission.“In BJP-EC’s ‘Thieves’ Market’ — the bigger the theft, the bigger the reward,” Rahul Gandhi wrote in a post on X, reacting to the appointment.The remark came amid growing Opposition criticism over the BJP government’s decision to appoint Manoj Kumar Agarwal — who supervised the recently concluded West Bengal assembly elections — as the state’s top bureaucrat within days of the saffron party coming to power.Agarwal, a 1990-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre, was serving as the state’s chief electoral officer during the high-voltage 2026 assembly elections that saw the BJP secure a landslide victory.The BJP won 207 seats in the 294-member assembly, reducing the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress to 80 seats and ending the party’s long rule in the state.TMC questions neutrality of Election CommissionThe Trinamool Congress strongly objected to the appointment, claiming it reinforced suspicions about the neutrality of election authorities during the polls.TMC MP Sagarika Ghose accused the BJP government of rewarding a supposedly “neutral umpire” after the party’s sweeping victory.“The so called ‘neutral umpire’ is rewarded with the post of top bureaucrat of the @BJP4India dispensation in Bengal. Does anyone still SERIOUSLY believe #BengalElections2026 were free and fair? Outrageous and brazen,” Ghose posted on X. The appointment order was issued on Monday by the West Bengal government headed by chief minister Suvendu Adhikari.“The Governor is pleased to appoint Shri Manoj Kumar Agarwal, IAS (WB:1990), Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal and ex officio Additional Chief Secretary, Home and Hill Affairs (Election) Department... As Chief Secretary to the Government of West Bengal until further order(s),” the notification said.Agarwal replaced Dushyant Nariala, who had been appointed by the Election Commission ahead of the assembly elections.The move has also triggered debate because another official linked to the elections — former Election Commission special observer Subrata Gupta — was appointed adviser to the chief minister shortly after the BJP government took oath.Focus shifts to controversial SIROpposition parties have particularly pointed to Agarwal’s role in overseeing the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls before the elections.During the exercise, nearly 9.1 million names were deleted from voter lists across the state, including 2.71 million under a controversial “logical discrepancy” category.The TMC and other Opposition parties had alleged that the revision process disproportionately affected voters believed to support anti-BJP parties, though the Election Commission defended the exercise as necessary to clean up electoral rolls.At the same time, the assembly elections were conducted under unprecedented security arrangements, including heavy deployment of central forces across the state. The polls witnessed only sporadic clashes, a significant departure from Bengal’s history of politically violent elections.Agarwal formally took charge as chief secretary on Monday and was seen sitting beside Adhikari during the chief minister’s first meeting with IAS officers after assuming office. He did not speak to reporters after the appointment.BJP begins reshaping Bengal administrationThe appointment came as the new BJP government began allocating ministerial portfolios following its historic victory in West Bengal.Among the key appointments, BJP leader Agnimitra Paul was given charge of the municipal affairs and urban development department along with women and child development.Former Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh was assigned the rural development and animal husbandry portfolios, while former Union minister Nisith Pramanik received the north Bengal development and sports and youth affairs departments.Matua community leader Ashok Kirtania was appointed food minister, while tribal leader Kshudiram Tudu took charge of backward classes welfare and minority affairs.Chief minister Adhikari has retained all remaining departments for now.