The Kerala State Election Commission (SEC) has imposed a state-wide ban on the transfer of government employees assigned to duties for the upcoming local body polls.
Citing its constitutional authority under Articles 243K and 243ZA, the Commission directed the Chief Secretary and all Heads of Departments to cease shifting officials from their current posts until the entire election process has concluded. The ban, which came into effect on October 3, applies comprehensively to employees across all government departments, local bodies, universities, educational institutions, and statutory boards.
The SEC explained that optimum staff is pertinent for the preparation of electoral rolls, noting that it is currently gathering the details of all personnel necessary to carry out general election duties.
The Commission maintained that frequent transfers would disrupt preparations, such as voter list revisions and polling arrangements, particularly while staff data is actively being collected. To prevent further upheaval, the SEC has frozen all existing transfer orders and warned against issuing any new ones.
The Commission has, further, instructed the Local Self Government Department to urgently fill all existing vacancies for Electoral Registration Officers and Secretaries in Panchayats and Municipalities to ensure timely election preparedness.
However, the order does permit transfers under circumstances of administrative exigency, provided that prior clearance is obtained from either the SEC or the District Election Officer.
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