West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal, who oversaw the state’s controversial electoral roll revision and the recently concluded Assembly elections, has been appointed as the new Chief Secretary of the state.
Even before the notification of his appointment, he was seen at Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s first administrative meeting with Cabinet Ministers and heads (Secretaries) of various government departments, according to photographs shared by BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on Facebook.
Ghosh uploaded these pictures on his social media handles on Monday, 11 May.
In the photos, Agarwal is seen seated at the meeting chaired by Adhikari.
The development is politically significant because Agarwal’s conduct as the State CEO had come under sharp criticism from the Trinamool Congress during the election process. The TMC had accused him of partisan conduct and had moved the Election Commission seeking action against him.
The Quint spoke to former Election Commissioner of India (ECI), SY Quraishi, who pointed that it is normal for bureaucrats to go back to state/central postings after serving in the Commission. "If he is the senior-most IAS officer for the position, there is nothing procedurally wrong with his posting. Though it definitely is bad optics, especially at a time when there is so much scrutiny and distrust surrounding the Election Commission's role in conducting the elections," he said.
Are There Precedents?
There are precedents of election officials moving into senior government roles after elections, though an immediate transition from Chief Electoral Officer to Chief Secretary is relatively uncommon and politically sensitive.
One comparable example is from Odisha. After the BJP came to power in 2024, then Odisha Chief Electoral Officer Nikunja Bihari Dhal was appointed Additional Chief Secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office. This happened shortly after the new government assumed office.
In November 2018, Vijay Kumar Dev was appointed Chief Secretary of Delhi. This was a few months after he was appointed the Delhi CEO (in July 2018). Dev, however, did not oversee any major election in the capital.
In Bengal itself, retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta, who served as the Election Commission-appointed Special Roll Observer during the SIR exercise, has reportedly been appointed adviser to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. This has added to the scrutiny around officials associated with the election and roll revision process moving into influential roles under the new government.
Who is Manoj Kumar Agarwal?
Manoj Kumar Agarwal is a 1990-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre. He has held several important posts in the state government, including senior positions in the Personnel and Administrative Reforms, Food, Fire and Emergency Services, and Forest departments.
He was serving as West Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer during the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls and the 2026 Assembly elections.
Under the Representation of the People Act, the Chief Electoral Officer is designated by the Election Commission of India in consultation with the state government. Once designated, the CEO functions under the superintendence, direction and control of the Election Commission for election-related work.
Why His Presence at the Meeting Matters
There is no automatic legal bar on a serving IAS officer attending administrative meetings of the state government or later being appointed to a government post. CEOs are state-cadre IAS officers who return to regular administrative assignments after election-related duties.
But the optics are politically sensitive.
In an interview to NDTV ahead of polling, Agarwal defended the deletion of 58 lakh names, saying the cases involved voters who were dead, shifted, duplicate or absent. He said he took “full responsibility” for the deletions, while also stating that the CEO cannot directly add or delete names and that his role was supervisory.
The Process For Appointing a Chief Secretary
The Chief Secretary is the senior-most bureaucrat in a state government and functions as the principal adviser to the Chief Minister on administrative matters.
Unlike the Chief Electoral Officer, whose designation involves the Election Commission, the Chief Secretary is appointed by the state government. The choice is effectively made by the Chief Minister, and the formal appointment is issued by the state government.
There is no fixed tenure for a Chief Secretary. However, if the officer is close to retirement and the state government wants to continue them beyond superannuation, the extension requires the necessary approval under service rules.
This is relevant in Agarwal’s case because he is due to retire in July 2026. Reports have suggested that if appointed, he may initially serve for a short tenure, with the possibility of extension later.