NEW DELHI: THE Centre has provided Y-plus category security cover to West Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal in view of safety concerns due to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state, officials said on Sunday.
A team of 11–12 armed personnel of the CISF security wing has been deployed for the CEO’s personal and house security, which has taken charge.
The move follows an order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on December 26. Sources said there were intelligence inputs about potential threats to the officer.
The SIR exercise to update the electoral rolls is underway in West Bengal. On December 16, the poll panel published the draft electoral rolls, deleting over 58 lakh voters from the list due to death, migration, and non-submission of forms.
It has triggered intense political friction with the ruling Trinamool Congress targeting the Election Commission. On Saturday, the party accused the poll panel of deleting lakhs of voters from the rolls to benefit the BJP ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.
Meanwhile, an association of West Bengal government officers raised objections to deletion of voters bypassing the statutory role of Electoral Registration Officers.