EC to states: Stop inter-district transfer of officers within same Lok Sabha constituency

States are transferring officers to adjacent districts within the same Lok Sabha constituency after completing three years in a district, the Election Commission noted.

election commission officers transfer order lok sabha polls

Officers who are posted in their home district or have completed three years in one place are to be transferred before elections, as per ECI policy. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna)

The Election Commission Saturday said state governments had been asked not to transfer officers who had completed three years’ service in one district to another district within the same Parliamentary constituency.

The EC had taken “serious note” of cases where officers were being transferred to adjacent districts within the same constituency by state governments. In a statement, the EC said it had strengthened the existing transfer policy “to ensure that officials are not able to disturb the level playing field in the elections”.

Officers who are posted in their home district or have completed three years at one place are to be transferred before elections, as per ECI policy.

“Plugging the loopholes in the existing instructions, the Commission has directed that, except for the States/UTs that comprise up to two Parliamentary constituencies, all States shall ensure that officers who are transferred out of the district are not posted within the same Parliamentary constituency. It has been reiterated that the transfer policy of the Commission must be adhered to in both letter and spirit and not just being camouflaged to show compliance,” the EC statement said.

The EC said the rule applied to transfers that have already been ordered in accordance with the EC’s prior instructions.

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