GUWAHATI: The voluntary retirement of former Nagaon District Commissioner-cum-District Election Officer (DEO) Debashish Sharma has triggered a political controversy ahead of the Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election.
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Congress MP from Dhubri Rakibul Hussain has written to the Election Commission of India (ECI), seeking an urgent inquiry and appropriate action over Sharma’s tenure as the district’s DC-cum-DEO.
The controversy comes amid reports that Sharma may enter electoral politics and could contest the Nagaon Lok Sabha by-poll on a BJP ticket. However, neither the BJP nor Sharma has officially confirmed his candidature.
The Nagaon Lok Sabha seat fell vacant after Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi resigned from the Lok Sabha in March 2026. Bordoloi later joined the BJP and contested the Assam Assembly election from the Dispur constituency, where he emerged victorious.
Sharma had been serving as Nagaon DC since December 2025 and also held the responsibilities of District Election Officer.
Speaking to the media, Rakibul Hussain questioned the neutrality of the electoral process, alleging that Sharma was involved in sensitive election-related meetings while there were reports of his possible political candidature.
“The elections that are conducted, which ought to be neutral, the officer who you say is going to conduct the election, he is the formal candidate of the BJP party,” Hussain alleged.
He further alleged that Sharma participated in meetings concerning EVM storage and dispatch, deployment of officials and security arrangements.
“We lodged a formal complaint against Debashish Sharma. The Election Commission of India acknowledged receiving it and said they would inquire,” Hussain said.
With the Nagaon by-poll yet to be formally scheduled and the BJP yet to announce its candidate, the controversy now hinges on whether the Election Commission will examine the concerns raised by the Congress.