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Ex-EC special observer for SIR Subrata Gupta is now adviser to Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari
Retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta was on Saturday appointed the adviser to West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, according to a notification.
Retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Subrata Gupta has been appointed as adviser to newly elected West Bengal chief minister Suvendu Adhikari who took oath in a high-profile ceremony in Kolkata on Saturday.
The state government announced the decision via an official order on Saturday, ANI reported.
Who is Subrata Gupta?
Gupta is 1990-batch IAS officer and was earlier appointed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) as the Special Roll Observer for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise conducted ahead of the recently concluded West Bengal Assembly elections.
The BJP defeated the TMC in the elections by securing 207 seats, pushing Mamata's party to 80 and ending her 15-year-long stint in Bengal.
As Bengal sees a change of power, the newly formed BJP government in West Bengal also named IAS officer Shantanu Bala as the Private Secretary to the Chief Minister.
"The Governor is pleased to appoint Shri Shantanu Bala, IAS (WB:2017), ADM, South 24 Parganas, as Private Secretary to the Hon'ble Chief Minister, Government of West Bengal until further order(s). This is issued in the interest of public service," the notification stated, according to PTI.
Also read: ‘First enemy is BJP’: Mamata calls for Oppn unity in Bengal as Suvendu takes oath as CM
Shantanu Bala, a 2017-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre, was serving as the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) of South 24 Parganas prior to his new assignment.
According to the orders issued, both officers have been directed to assume charge of their new responsibilities with immediate effect.
Suvendu takes oath as new Bengal CM
BJP's Suvendu Adhikari took oath as the first BJP CM of Bengal on Saturday in a ceremony that was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union minister Amit Shah, chief ministers of NDA-ruled states and the party's top leadership. BJP's Dilip Ghosh, Agnimitra Paul, Ashok Kirtania, Kshudiram Tudu, Nisith Pramanik took oath in the ceremony.
West Bengal recorded the highest-ever voter turnout since independence with an impressive 91.66% polling in Phase II of the Assembly elections. In phase I, the poll participation was 93.19%, taking the combined poll percentage to 92.47%.
The 2026 West Bengal Assembly election results have led to a dramatic political shift, ending Mamata Banerjee's long dominance and bringing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to power with a commanding 206 seats. This marks a major blow to the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC), which secured only 80 seats - a steep decline.
