New Delhi, January 20
Taking a strong view of the alleged attack on Congress leader Ajoy Kumar in poll-bound Tripura, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has conveyed its “displeasure” to the state Chief Secretary and police chief. They have been asked to remove the sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) of the area and explain how the situation escalated despite presence of central forces.
Commission officials said the ECI directed the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police (DGP) to suspend and immediately remove the SDPO. It also ordered suspension and removal of the officer in charge of West Tripura’s Jirania along with the officer in charge of the Ranibazaar police station.
On Thursday, the ECI ordered an inquiry into the incident of alleged political violence in the Jirania subdivision of West Tripura district reported on January 18.
The Chief Secretary and the DGP were also asked to immediately assess the threat perception to the leaders of various political parties in the state and provide security accordingly and report back, the officials said.
