Kolkata, 2 December (H.S.):

The political controversy surrounding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list in West Bengal continues to escalate. Meanwhile, the Election Commission has clarified that work is progressing smoothly and the draft voter list will be released on December 16th.

According to the Election Commission, based on the digitization of enumeration forms received by Monday evening, it is estimated that 43.30 lakh names will be removed from the draft list. According to officials, this number may increase further once the digitization process is complete.

According to sources, 21.45 lakh of the names to be removed are deceased voters. Approximately 5.50 lakh voters have not yet been identified. Approximately 15.10 lakh voters have moved, while less than 100,000 voters have been found to be fake.

An Election Commission official said, Some voters have not been identified yet, but they may be identified upon further investigation.

Notably, as of October 27, there were a total of 76.637 million registered voters in West Bengal.

Meanwhile, the ruling Trinamool Congress has intensified its agitation against the SIR. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hold rallies in Malda on December 3, Murshidabad on December 4, and Cooch Behar on December 9. These districts are border districts with large minority, migrant, and displaced populations.

Last week, she held a rally in Bongaon, a refugee-dominated Matua area.

The Trinamool Congress alleged that the SIR is a completely disorganized, careless, and inhumane process, resulting in the deaths of 40 people so far, including 17 booth-level officials.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey