Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi separately wrote to Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan on July 29, seeking action against Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Maneesh Garg. Garg was given additional charge of the administration division on July 28, while Deputy Election Commissioner Bhanu Prakash Yeturu was on leave. Within hours, the commissioners alleged, he changed the work assigned to senior officers.
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The Allegations Against Garg
Both commissioners said he made the changes without consulting the Commission or the officers concerned, despite instructions that such changes needed prior discussion or approval. Joshi’s letter added that Garg had issued similar orders on an earlier occasion, when he was DEC (Administration).
The Big Reason Behind the Inaction
The RTI reply, obtained by activist Commodore Lokesh Batra (Retd.), shows the secretariat’s thinking. It did not act because the letters were sent in the commissioners’ individual capacity. It added that, without an official communication from the Commission as a whole, any action at this stage may be inappropriate. The secretariat treated the letters as individual concerns, not a formal complaint from the Election Commission of India.
Fear of ‘Interference’
The notings also recorded that acting on the complaints could be seen as interference. They noted that although Garg was appointed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, his conduct is governed by the Election Commission‘s own rules and guidelines.
What the Secretariat Did Instead
According to the RTI reply, the secretariat proposed on August 3 to seek the CEC’s views on the letters. It also suggested placing the matter on record with the Department of Personnel and Training, so it could be considered in future decisions about Garg. The complaints were forwarded to the offices of CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the DoPT.