ECI suspends six U.P. officials for dereliction of duty, polling booth lapses in Council polls

Amid an uproar over alleged supervisory lapses in the October 23 poll for the Agra Division Teachers Constituency of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday (October 26, 2026) put six officials under suspension with immediate effect for failing to ensure effective supervision and maintain proper control within and in the vicinity of the polling stations.In a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Uttar Pradesh, the ECI added that such dereliction of duty on the part of officers holding supervisory positions is viewed as serious lapses and cannot be condoned.Earlier, the ECI, on the recommendation of the U.P. CEO, had declared polling void in three stations of the constituency, and announced repolling on October 26. The repolling was conducted “peacefully and fairly”, with a voter turnout of 57% across the three booths, the U.P. CEO said in a statement.Charge-sheets to be issuedThe officials placed under suspension include O.P. Chak, Sector Magistrate and District Khadi and Village Industries Officer, Agra; Inspector Harisharan Singh, Crime Branch, Sector Police Officer; and Sub-Inspector Shri Sandeep Kumar, Etmaddaula Police Station, Agra. They had been deputed at a polling station in the Saiyan panchayat office.Similarly, Vishal Rathore, Sector Magistrate and Regional Forest Officer, Fatehabad; Inspector Shri Purushottam Pal, Additional Inspector, Fatehabad, Agra; and Sub-Inspector Shri Sumit Tyagi, Ekta Police Station, who were deputed at a polling booth in the Fatehabad panchayat office, were also suspended.The ECI also directed the concerned authority to issue charge-sheets to the listed delinquent officers and forward the draft charge-sheets to the Commission for vetting within 10 days from the date of issue of the letter, before they are formally issued to the officers themselves. U.P. CEO was told to send an immediate compliance report in this matter. Published - October 26, 2026 10:36 pm IST