Kolkata — The Election Commission of India (ECI) is set to rely on district-level sensitivity mapping to decide the deployment of police observers for the upcoming 2026 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election scheduled later this year.
According to sources in the office of the Chief Electoral Officer West Bengal, the Commission will classify districts into three categories while assessing their sensitivity.
The first category will include districts that share an international border with Bangladesh. The second category will consist of districts that have witnessed significant poll-related violence during the last three elections, whether before, during, or after voting. The third category will include districts where both these factors apply.
Districts such as Murshidabad district, Malda district and Cooch Behar district fall into the third category as they share borders with Bangladesh and also have a history of election-related violence.
Meanwhile, districts like Howrah district are considered part of the second category due to past incidents of political violence, despite not sharing an international border.
In view of these factors, the ECI is planning to increase the number of central observers across all categories, particularly police observers in sensitive districts.
During the 2021 Assembly elections in West Bengal, the Commission had appointed 170 general observers, 84 expenditure observers and 37 police observers. However, officials indicated that the number of police observers could rise to at least 100 this time — nearly three times the previous figure.
The move is aimed at strengthening election monitoring and ensuring better security management during the polls.
Officials also explained that police observers will be given greater authority in the upcoming election, especially regarding the movement and deployment of personnel from the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF).
In previous elections, the responsibility for determining CAPF movement rested with district magistrates, who also serve as district electoral officers while the Model Code of Conduct was in force.
However, the Commission has now decided that police observers appointed by the ECI will make the final decisions on CAPF deployment in their respective districts.
Additionally, district-level composite teams will be formed to assess security needs in specific pockets. These teams will evaluate the requirement for CAPF deployment, with the police observers’ decisions considered final.
With inputs from IANS