EC orders Guj poll observer’s removal over Instagram post
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India has ordered the immediate removal of an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer posted as Gujarat election observer after he announced his appointment on Instagram with posts that showed off his security detail. The poll body acted within 24 hours of the post going up, with a letter to the Gujarat chief electoral officer objecting to the “publicity stunt” and asking him to go back to his parent cadre, Uttar Pradesh.
Abhishek Singh, a 2011 batch IAS officer, who is also an actor, said: “I accept the Honourable Election Commission’s order with all humility.” His Instagram handle — he has three million followers — still has the post which had two photos. In one, Singh is seen posing in front of a car with a plaque that reads “Election Commission of India Observer.” In the second picture, Singh is seen posing along with a security person and other personnel with the caption: “Joined Ahmedabad as Observer for Gujarat Elections.” Singh uploaded the same set of images on Twitter and his Facebook page, and with the same captions.
In its letter on Friday, ECI said: “The commission has taken a very serious view of the matter and therefore, Singh has been immediately relieved of his duties.’’ The poll body also directed Singh to leave the constituency immediately and report to his nodal officer in the parent cadre. All government facilities provided to the IAS officer for carrying out his observer duties would also be withdrawn by the District Administration, the order by EC observed.
In his place, Krishna Bajpai, has been appointed General Observer for Bapunagar and Asarwa, two assembly constituencies in Ahmedabad, until a permanent replacement for Singh is found.
The IAS officer cracked the UPSC exam in 2011, securing the 94th rank. He is married to another high profile IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal. Singh has an avid following on social media, has appeared in music videos, and made a cameo appearance in the Netflix series Delhi Crimes Season 2. Singh has also appeared in the short film Chaar Pandrah.
”As per the rule book, observers are not allowed any kind of media interaction. Possibly, this clause would have been the reason (for his removal),’’ said another IAS officer, who is posted in Gujarat. However, he acknowledged that despite this rule, there are other officers who have written about their observer posting on social media.
The Gujarat elections will be held in two phases on December 1 and December 5, with votes to be counted on December 8.