Weeks after a controversy over work allocation within the Election Commission led Election Commissioners SS Sandhu and Vivek Joshi to take up the matter with the Cabinet Secretary, the poll body has issued a fresh work allocation order dated November 4, bringing Information Technology (IT) head Seema Khanna back under a Deputy Election Commissioner.The latest work allocation order is significant as it formalises the distribution of administrative, IT and grievance-related responsibilities within the commission. It follows the dispute over the controversial July 28 order, which drew objections from both Election Commissioners over the manner in which responsibilities had been reassigned.They had written separate letters to the Cabinet Secretary on July 29, raising concerns over the distribution of work, the work roster and the process through which the order had been issued. The controversy stemmed from the reallocation of IT and Grievances/Public Grievance Redressal System (PGRS) responsibilities.As reported by the media, the July 28 work allocation order had shifted IT and PGRS responsibilities from Deputy Election Commissioner (DEC) Sanjay Kumar to DG (IT) Seema Khanna. Prior to July 28, these portfolios were handled by Sanjay, with Khanna reporting to him. Sanjay was repatriated to his parent cadre in August.Under the November 4 order, Khanna has been brought back under the original reporting structure and will route all IT and PGRS-related files through newly appointed Senior DEC Pawan Kumar Sharma.The Election Commission described the move as a routine work allocation exercise, with sources saying the July 28 order was “never implemented and had been kept in abeyance”.The July 28 office order on internal work allocation was issued by an IAS officer of Additional Secretary rank who was on deputation to the Election Commission, said EC sources.The sources said the two Election Commissioners wrote separate letters to the Cabinet Secretary on July 29 regarding the order and the officer’s conduct. Subsequently, in view of the joint direction issued by the two Election Commissioners on July 30, the July 28 order was never implemented, the sources said.Under the July 28 order, Khanna was directed to submit files relating to IT and grievances directly to the Election Commission as Kumar was on his way out, sources said.Meanwhile, the fresh work allocation order has expanded the Election Planning portfolio, which deals with poll scheduling, to two Deputy Election Commissioners (DECs).Earlier, the portfolio was handled exclusively by Senior DEC Maneesh Garg, whose conduct had drawn formal objections from the two Election Commissioners in letters to the Cabinet Secretary, as per media reports. The portfolio will now be jointly overseen by Garg and DEC Prakash Rajpurohit.