A court in Kolkata on Thursday directed Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra to delete two posts on X accusing West Bengal chief secretary Manoj Kumar Agarwal of being a “vote chor” within 24 hours, and restrained her from making or sharing similar statements against him.
Agarwal was West Bengal’s chief electoral officer when the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls was rolled out in the state ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.
The Alipore court directed Moitra to delete the posts dated October 3 and October 6 from her X account within 24 hours of receiving the order.
“The defendant shall delete the first posted dated 03.10.2026 and the second post, dated 06.10.2026 from her X account @MahuaMoitra within 24 hours of receiving this order,” the order stated.
The court also restrained Moitra and anyone acting on her behalf from publishing, reposting, sharing or repeating the allegedly defamatory statements on any platform. These included allegations that Agarwal had “committed every illegality”, was “singularly responsible” for illegally disenfranchising voters, or had acted at the behest of a “maalik”.
Responding to the order, Moitra wrote on X: “I will be filing a vacating application to reinforce my right to call a Vote Chor a Vote Chor.”
In her October 3 post, Moitra wrote: “2 biggest architects of Bengal SIR - committed every illegality under the planet. Subrata Kaku & Manoj Uncle - watch out. India is coming for you next. Bachh nahi paoge.”
Agarwal had approached the court over the posts.
In her October 6 post, Moitra wrote: “Manoj Agarwal Ex CEO WB is a Vote Chor. It’s not defamation when truth is spoken. Manoj like his maalik Gyanu is a Vote Chor. He is singularly responsible for illegally disenfranchising lakhs of valid Bengali voters.”
Agarwal received praise for overseeing a largely violence-free assembly election in West Bengal, but also faced criticism over the large-scale disenfranchisement of voters during the SIR conducted under his watch. He was appointed chief secretary after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) formed the government in the state in May.