Kolkata, March 25 -- The All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) has lodged a formal complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the appointment of Surajit Roy as the Returning Officer for the Bhabanipur Assembly Constituency, officials said on Wednesday.

The party has raised concerns that Roy, who has been appointed to oversee the election in the high-profile constituency, is reportedly close to West Bengal Leader of Opposition and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari and is allegedly working at his behest.

This development has further escalated tensions between the AITC and the BJP ahead of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly elections, scheduled to be held in two phases on April 23 and April 29. The counti...