Kolkata, Sept. 28 -- At the time, the chief election commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, is entangled in a major controversy at the same week the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal, Neelam Meena is mired at the centre of an unusual controversy after a social media post went viral which is claimed to have been posted by her son, Anish Ray, who accused her of allegedly misusing her official position to interfere in his personal life and harass his friend.
Meena, is a 1998-batch IAS officer and was appointed CEO in May 2026, after Manoj Agarwal was posted as chief secretary.
Ray now 21 years old, in a social-media post alleged that he was being prevented from meeting a female friend who stays in Howrah. He claimed that her family was threatened after his mother allegedly involved the minister of state for Urban Development, Umesh Rai in the matter. He further alleged that men linked to Rai and BJP workers were sent to the girl's residence to intimidate her family.
The allegations, however, could not be verified, and Meena could not be contacted for her comment, if the social-media account belongs to her son.
Rai, however, has rejected the allegations. Rai claimed that he lodged a police complaint against Ray. Rai said he came to know about the video through a friend and was surprised by the allegations.
He maintained that he had no reason to intervene in the family dispute and said he does not know Meena well enough to have become involved in her son's personal affairs.
Ray alleged that his mother's official influence was being used against people close to him and has appealed to political parties for intervention. It triggered questions because Meena currently holds one of the state's most sensitive posts.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.