Ratcheting up the political temperature around the SIR, senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari has written to CEC Gyanesh Kumar, accusing West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of trying to “undermine” the Election Commission and “shield an illicit vote-bank” her party has “nurtured for years”.
Adhikari’s letter to the CEC came hours after Banerjee’s communication to the poll panel on Thursday, in which she slammed the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls as “chaotic and coercive”.
The Leader of the Opposition in the assembly hit back late on Thursday with a four-page counter, calling her missive to the EC “misleading, politically motivated and factually distorted”.
He dubbed the CM’s objections as nothing less than “a desperate attempt to derail a clean-up drive that threatens her political ecosystem”.
“The Chief Minister’s letter is a calculated attempt to sow discord among election officials, discredit the ECI’s constitutional mandate and protect a vote-bank of ineligible and illegal elements her government has nurtured for years,” Adhikari asserted.
In a characteristic combative tone, he accused Banerjee of “intimidating” booth-level officers and making “unacceptable insinuations” against the CEC.
“Such conduct from the head of a state government must be condemned,” Adhikari said.
He dismissed Banerjee’s portrayal of the SIR as a “chaotic and disruptive” initiative, arguing that similar revision drives have been “part of the ECI’s toolkit since the 1950s,” including the extensive exercise in 2002-03.
“The Hon’ble CM herself contested and won the 2004 Lok Sabha polls based on rolls revised in 2003. Will she now question the legitimacy of her own victory?” the BJP leader said in the letter to Kumar.
Pressing his long-standing charge of large-scale discrepancies in Bengal’s voter lists, Adhikari said the current SIR was essential to “weed out lakhs of bogus entries,” claiming multiple enrolments, dead voters and forged documents. The LoP said he had already submitted data listing “13.25 lakh dubious names” to the CEO.
Seeking to amplify his allegation of an “infiltration ecosystem,” the BJP leader pointed to recent visuals aired by TV channels showing individuals allegedly attempting to return to Bangladesh, fearing detection during the SIR. Many, he claimed, had “openly admitted on camera” to possessing forged Indian documents “facilitated by local TMC leaders”.
“This is the rotten underbelly of TMC’s infiltration ecosystem,” he said, reiterating a charge the ruling party has repeatedly dismissed as communal fear-mongering.
Adhikari also referred to the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, claiming that CCTV cameras at several booths were “deliberately disabled” to enable “fake voting and manipulation”.
He cited the Calcutta High Court’s recent order disqualifying Mukul Roy as MLA as “further proof of a pattern of political malpractice”.
In his letter, Adhikari also accused the state’s Finance Department of withholding funds and approvals for BLOs and data entry operators.
“This is a petty tactic to manufacture chaos and shift blame onto the ECI,” he wrote.
Urging the Commission to “stand firm as the guardian of democracy”, Adhikari pressed for additional resources to ensure the SIR is conducted “flawlessly and without fear,” arguing that the people of Bengal were looking up to the EC for a “clean and credible” electoral roll ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.
The Trinamool Congress did not immediately react to Adhikari’s allegations.
TMC goons threatening BLOs: BJP
New Delhi: The BJP on Friday accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of trying to obstruct the ongoing special intensive revision of electoral rolls in the state, and urged the poll panel to ensure the exercise is completed “smoothly and transparently” like Bihar.
Speaking to reporters here, BJP national spokesperson Guru Prakash Paswan alleged that “Trinamool Congress goons” were threatening booth-level officers in West Bengal, asking them not to follow the Election Commission’s directives.
He also alleged that Banerjee, who is also the Trinamool Congress supremo, was objecting to the voter roll cleanup exercise as “infiltrators are a part of her vote bank”.
The West Bengal chief minister wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Thursday, alleging that SIR was being conducted in the state in an “unplanned and coercive” manner, putting citizens and officials at risk. She also claimed the exercise has reached an “alarming” and a “dangerous” stage, and demanded an “immediate corrective action”.
Responding to Banerjee’s claims, Paswan said, “In West Bengal, a game of letters is being played and doubts are being cast on an entirely constitutional process.”
“The INDI alliance had to face defeat in the Bihar polls, and we saw that they are not able to accept it with dignity. The Supreme Court has said that SIR is a clear, historic and constitutional process,” the BJP leader said.
Highlighting that SIR is a prerogative of the Election Commission under Article 324-325 of the Constitution, he said, “Despite that, the type of atmosphere being created around it is unfortunate and against the spirit of the Constitution and constitutional morality.”
“You play politics in the name of the Constitution, but when you get the opportunity, you insult it,” the BJP spokesperson remarked.
Paswan alleged that booth-level officers, who happen to be state government employees, are being threatened by “Trinamool Congress goons” and “criminals”, asking them not to abide by the Election Commission’s directives.
“Imagine what the mental state of such employees would be who are receiving such threats. State-sponsored goons and criminals are threatening and intimidating BLOs. The SIR process was completed peacefully in Bihar without any claims or objections.
“When this (SIR) happened so peacefully in Bihar and is happening peacefully in other states, who is Mamata Banerjee to come in the way of this constitutional process? Who is she to deprive genuine electors from their right to vote?” he posed.
Paswan urged the Election Commission not to tolerate any violation of constitutional dignity.
“You (EC) should ensure there is no obstruction in the SIR process. If there is a need, deploy extra forces. If needed, further streamline your administrative machinery.
“Ensure that the rights of the people are not sacrificed for appeasement. The Election Commission must ensure that this process is conducted in a smooth and transparent manner, as it was done in Bihar and as it is being done in other states,” he said.
The BJP spokesperson further claimed that as soon as the SIR of the electoral rolls was announced for West Bengal, “infiltrators” are returning to their country in droves.
“This proves that in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee’s party gains a lead (during polling) in the Kolkata area, the North and the South Parganas, because she has made infiltrators her vote bank. This is her vote bank politics and appeasement.
“This appeasement cannot be allowed. Only those who are citizens of the country have the right to vote,” Paswan added.