Cabinet Secretariat declined to act on ECs’ complaints against officer

RTI-released Cabinet Secretariat records show that the government declined to act on separate complaints by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi against Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Maneesh Garg, saying intervention without a formal communication from the Election Commission as a whole could be inappropriate and construed as interference. The commissioners wrote separately to Cabinet Secretary T. V. Somanathan on July 29, 2026, seeking action over Garg’s handling of work allocations. The Secretariat acknowledged their letters but concluded that Garg’s conduct should be governed by the Election Commission’s own rules and guidelines. According to the complaints, Garg took additional charge of the Administration Division while Deputy Election Commissioner Bhanu Prakash Yeturu was on leave from July 27 to August 9. The commissioners alleged that Garg issued a work-allocation order on July 28 without prior discussion with or approval from the Commission or the officers concerned. Joshi also said the Administration Division did not provide a file he requested. These claims are recorded as the commissioners’ allegations and are not independently...