BJP leader questions CP’s appointment

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has sought a panel of three officers from the Punjab Government for the appointment of a new Commissioner of Police (CP) in Ludhiana, following objections raised against the current incumbent, Swapan Sharma.

The move comes in the wake of a formal complaint by former IAS officer and senior BJP leader Sucha Ram Ladhar, who questioned Sharma’s appointment to the sensitive post in an election-bound district. Ladhar contended that officers who were transferred during the Lok Sabha elections were not eligible to be posted in any constituency undergoing an election or by-election process, citing established ECI norms.

In his complaint, Ladhar wrote to both the Governor of Punjab and the ECI, urging intervention. While the ECI typically refrains from intervening in state administrative matters outside of active election periods, the declaration of by-election for the Ludhiana West Assembly constituency triggered the Election Commission’s jurisdiction. Subsequently, the ECI directed the government to submit a panel of three eligible officers for consideration for the Ludhiana CP position.

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Punjab, however, has described Sharma’s posting as a “routine transfer,” a claim that has raised eyebrows among election observers and legal experts. Critics argue that the CEO’s remarks appear to undermine the ECI’s guidelines and question the neutrality of the electoral machinery in the state.