Kolkata, 10 December (H.S.):

A major controversy erupted in West Bengal’s Nadia district on Wednesday after a sack filled with voter identity cards (EPICs) was found dumped by the side of National Highway 12 near Shantipur. The discovery sparked panic in the area and triggered a fresh political slugfest between the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

According to police, local residents first spotted the sack near a garbage heap and alerted authorities. A police team from Shantipur reached the spot, recovered the bag, and took it to the station for investigation. Officials said that a verification process has been initiated to confirm the authenticity of the voter ID cards and ascertain how they ended up at the location.

A senior police officer said, “We are checking whether these EPICs are genuine and belong to voters from this or another district. A detailed investigation is underway.”

Soon after the discovery, political accusations began to fly. A member of the Shantipur Panchayat Samiti and a local TMC leader alleged that BJP workers from another district had deliberately dumped the voter IDs to create confusion during the ongoing electoral roll verification drive.

The BJP, however, dismissed the allegation and countered that the area falls under a TMC-controlled panchayat. A local BJP leader said, “These are the same cards used for fake voting in past elections. The ruling party is trying to shift the blame.”

The incident comes amid the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls currently being conducted across West Bengal. The exercise, which began on November 4, involves door-to-door verification and distribution of voter registration forms and is scheduled to continue till December 11.

Police have not ruled out any possibility, and further inquiries are ongoing to trace the source of the recovered voter ID cards.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh