New Delhi: Kerala’s chief electoral officer (CEO) has cited a “clerical error” after the seal of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s state unit appeared on a 2019 Election Commission (EC) letter sent to political parties on poll-related guidelines and sparked an uproar on Monday (March 23).Later on Monday, the CEO said that the official dealing with the release of the letter was suspended pending an inquiry.The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) on Monday first posted a copy of the EC’s letter carrying the Kerala BJP’s seal. Dated March 2019, the letter deals with the poll body’s guidelines on the publicity of criminal antecedents by political parties and candidates.“Have all pretences been dropped by the BJP? It is no secret that the same power centre seems to control both the Election Commission of India and the BJP. Even then, at least maintain the courtesy of two separate desks. Now even that seems unnecessary. Seals are being casually swapped,” the CPI(M)’s Kerala unit wrote in a post on X.The post attached images of the letter and an email sent to parties, and said that it had been received by multiple parties and was also cross-verified with at least two recipients.“We have often heard claims that, no matter which button is pressed on a voting machine, the lotus lights up. But this is the first time it appears as if the BJP and the Election Commission are using the same seal,” the CPI(M) said.In response, the Kerala CEO in a statement on X on Monday evening said that “this was purely a clerical error which was identified and rectified immediately”.“It has come to our notice that a letter from the Election Commission, bearing the seal of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is being circulated across various Malayalam news channels. The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) hereby clarifies that this was purely a clerical error, which was identified and rectified immediately,” the CEO Kerala’s statement said.It added that the BJP’s Kerala unit had recently approached the CEO’s office seeking clarification on the 2019 guidelines and had submitted a photocopy of the original 2019 directive.“The party’s seal was present on that specific copy provided by them. Due to an oversight, the office failed to notice the party symbol on the submitted document and inadvertently redistributed it to other political parties as part of the requested clarification,” the CEO said.“The guidelines in question have undergone revisions since 2019, which have already been communicated to all political entities.”Later in the day, the CEO announced that an assistant section officer whom it said was in charge of dealing with the release of the letter has been suspended pending an enquiry. He also released a copy of the original file dated 2019 not bearing the BJP’s seal.Opposition parties, which have been accusing the BJP of “vote theft” aided by the EC, said that the letter proved their allegation of the institution operating under the ruling party’s directives.In a statement the Congress said the letter was “not a mistake but a serious red flag”.“A constitutional body carrying the BJP’s mark raises serious questions about its neutrality and credibility. What does this say about the independence of our institutions?” the statement said.“Questions that demand answers: Why is the Election Commission behaving like a BJP stooge? How did a political party’s seal appear on an official EC communication? Who is accountable? Can the Election Commission explain this to the people of India? When institutions meant to safeguard democracy appear compromised, silence is not an option.”In a statement, the Trinamool Congress, which has been locked in an ongoing confrontation with the poll body over the special intensive revision of the electoral rolls in poll-bound West Bengal, said that the presence of the stamp showed that the EC is the BJP’s “B-Team”.Official STAMP of approval that @ECISVEEP is @BJP4India’s B-team! pic.twitter.com/eoTuymJ6hq— All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) March 23, 2026In an unprecedented move, opposition parties earlier this month submitted notice of a no-confidence motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in both houses of parliament.