West Bengal assembly elections 2026: SC dismisses plea against EC move to transfer chief secretary, DGP, others

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea challenging the Election Commission of India's orders transferring senior police officers and bureaucrats in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant observed that "it happens everywhere. Not the first time,".

However, the Bench noted that the legal issue raised by the petitioner regarding absence of consultation by the ECI with the state government was valid. Hence, it kept the question of law open though it declined to interfere in the present matter.


"Petitioner has raised substantial questions of law. However we are not intervening in it as of now. Question of law is kept open," the Bench said in its order while refusing to entertain the plea. The development took place during hearing an appeal against an order of the Calcutta High Court which had refused to interfere with the transfers. The HC had said that other officers have already replaced those transferred by the poll body.

The high court had also refused to look into the aspect of impeachment proceedings initiated against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

"More so, when no nexus between transfers and said motion could be established with accuracy and precision," it said