West Bengal Government Issues Circular on Employee Conduct and Official Information Sharing

MP May 22, 2026, Kolkata: The BJP government in West Bengal has issued a circular imposing a “complete prohibition” on its employees and officers from publicly criticising policies of the State and Central governments or sharing official documents and information with the media without prior sanction.

The circular, issued by the State’s Personnel and Administrative Reforms Department on Wednesday night and signed by Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Agarwal, triggered political controversy and criticism from sections of government employees.

However, on Thursday, the State government issued a fresh memorandum clarifying that the earlier circular would apply only to officers and staff working under regular establishments of the Government of West Bengal, including boards, corporations and parastatal bodies under the State’s administrative control.

The clarification effectively excluded employees of government-aided institutions from the ambit of the order.

The Opposition initially attacked the circular, with Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee criticising the order in a post on X.

He alleged that Bengal was being governed by the BJP through “remote control”, where “silence is now an administrative requirement”.

He further claimed that the circular was aimed at curbing free expression and “systematically choking fundamental rights” to ensure “absolute obedience to the masters sitting in Delhi”.

Following the revised memorandum, the Trinamool Congress claimed the State government had been forced to alter its earlier order after criticism and backlash from government employees.

The party also held a press conference at Trinamool Bhavan, where Kunal Ghosh and Tauseef Rahman criticised the BJP over the issue.

Referring to the original circular, Ghosh alleged that government employees were being prevented from sharing official information, criticising State policies and publicly raising grievances or demands.

He said government employees, as citizens, were entitled to freedom of speech under Article 19(1) of the Constitution and questioned why such a circular had become necessary.

Ghosh further alleged that the order was intended to silence employees ahead of possible adverse decisions by the government and claimed the administration had effectively “put cellotape” on the mouths of government staff.

He also said employees should continue raising demands for pending Dearness Allowance and other benefits.

Rahman alleged that “dictatorship” was being imposed in Bengal under directions from Delhi and claimed that those speaking against the government could face action from central agencies such as the ED or CBI.

The State government, however, maintained that the circular merely reiterated existing service conduct rules for government employees.