State Election Commissioner Mira Pandey has received three threatening letters containing allegations against her, with the West Bengal government ordering an inquiry into it.
"She has given the letters to the Home Department and an inquiry is on," Panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee told reporters today.
Earlier, Home Secretary Basudeb Banerjee told PTI "I received a letter from her which seeks to draw the state government's attention to her receiving three letters which contain allegations against her and threats."
Asked if the commissioner has sought protection in view of the letters, the Home Secretary said "security is tight for her and we will look into it."
Mukherjee, when asked who could be behind the letters, replied, "An inquiry is on and if people are caught, it will be known who are behind the conspiracy and legal steps will be taken against them".
Pandey and SEC secretary Tapas Roy were not available for comment.
Commission sources said that the letters were threatening in nature "presumably for her stand on the holding of panchayat elections in the state.
"She sought to ignore them, but later preferred to write to the Home Secretary when she received a third letter," the sources said.
