EC extends poll code curbs to retired officials re-engaged by five poll-bound states

The Election Commission of India has extended the model code of conduct restrictions to retired officials whom state governments have re-engaged, in a letter to the chief secretaries and chief electoral officers of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur. The letter is dated November 9 and became public on Tuesday, November 10.

The five states are the ones heading into assembly elections. Until now, the Commission’s instructions barred serving government employees from taking part in election campaigns, but nothing specific covered retired officials who had been engaged, employed or re-employed by a state or Union Territory government. The new letter closes that gap.

What the letter says

The Commission said the “restrictions and prohibitions applicable to serving government servants would also apply” to retired officials engaged by state governments. Government employees, it noted, “are not expected to take part in any election campaign or canvassing”.

In practice that means a retired officer working for a state government during the poll period must stay politically neutral, refrain from campaigning or canvassing, and must not use their name, official position or authority to favour any party or individual.

The letter adds a second set of curbs aimed at the state governments themselves. They may not summon election-related officers of a constituency or district where elections have been announced for official discussions or meetings. They are also barred from holding video conferences or meetings with those officers.

The model code’s provisions, the Commission said, extend to organisations, committees, corporations and commissions funded wholly or partly by the government, and to their employees.

Why the Commission acted

A senior official cited in reports said the Commission had received complaints in the past of misuse of official position by some people. In particular, retired government employees engaged by states had convened meetings of officials involved in election work during the poll code period. No state or individual was named.

The bar on summoning election officers protects the machinery that runs a vote: the officers of a district where polls are announced are to take direction on election work from the Commission.

Enforcement

The Commission warned that “any omission or commission of any act in contravention of Commission’s directions shall be viewed seriously”. It asked chief secretaries and chief electoral officers to bring the instructions to the attention of all concerned and to ensure strict compliance.

The letter does not list penalties.

What it means for the states

Governments in India routinely re-engage retired civil servants, police officers and technocrats as advisers, consultants, commission members or heads of state bodies. Some hold positions with considerable influence over the administration. The letter makes clear that once the model code is in force, these roles carry the same neutrality obligations as a serving post.

For voters, the practical effect is on the people who deal with the poll machinery. Election officers in a district where polls have been announced cannot be called to a meeting by a retired adviser or by the state government, so instructions on election work flow from the Commission and its officers only.

What happens next

The model code comes into force in each state when the Commission announces its poll schedule. Reports of the letter do not give polling dates for the five states, and the Commission has not said when it will announce them.