Kolkata, 22 December (H.S.) : Political tensions have escalated in West Bengal over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll, with Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee launching a sharp attack on the Election Commission on Monday. She alleged that voters’ names were being deleted on arbitrary grounds such as marriage-related change of residence, address updates, or minor spelling variations in names, and questioned the Commission’s authority to do so.

Addressing a meeting of party booth-level agents at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata, Banerjee described the voter deletion process as chaotic and unjust. She alleged that despite changes in constituency boundaries following delimitation, actions were being taken solely on the basis of the 2002 electoral roll, causing harassment to a large number of genuine voters.

Referring specifically to women voters, Banerjee said that after marriage many women move to their in-laws’ homes, sometimes changing their surnames and sometimes not. She alleged that even minor differences in English spelling such as the use of “A” or “E”, were being cited as grounds for deleting names from the voter list. She questioned how poor people, shopkeepers or daily wage workers could be expected to understand such technicalities.

The Chief Minister further claimed that these actions had caused severe mental stress and alleged that as many as 46 people had died due to anxiety linked to the voter list revision, holding the Election Commission responsible.

Banerjee also alleged attempts to manipulate elections through voter list irregularities. She claimed that motorcycles were being brought in from Bihar and spoke of an alleged “voter theft” conspiracy. She further expressed concern that artificial intelligence could be misused to delete or add names to the electoral roll.

Accusing the ruling BJP of influencing the process, Banerjee claimed that party “agents” were operating from within the Election Commission’s office and arbitrarily deleting names online. She also alleged that frequent changes in guidelines by the Commission were creating confusion and distress among the public.

The Chief Minister instructed TMC booth-level agents to conduct door-to-door verification to check whether voters whose names were deleted were actually deceased. She directed that if any eligible voter was found to have been excluded, necessary forms should be submitted in time and the voter’s presence ensured during hearings.

Banerjee further stated that migrant workers living, working and raising families in West Bengal should not have their voting or property rights questioned, and urged them to register as voters at their place of residence.

Terming the entire process “undemocratic and unconstitutional,” the Chief Minister warned that her party would launch peaceful protests and awareness campaigns to ensure that no eligible voter is deprived of their democratic rights.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh