West Bengal civic heads lose power to issue birth certificates

The Bengal Government has decided to bar all civic heads, including the panchayat pradhans, municipal chairmen and even the Mayors of various corporations, from issuing birth certificates after massive irregularities in issuing the same across the State were found in recent inspections.

The decision was on Thursday announced by State Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal following reports suggesting about 25 percent fake birth registrations from the samples checked.

The rate of issuance of fake birth certificates witnessed a sudden rise between 2023 and February 2026 out of which there was a whopping rise in such cases in the last one year that incidentally coincided with special intensive revision of electoral rolls ahead of the recently concluded Assembly elections. 

The Bengal police administration has also started conducting simultaneous raids at various places including municipalities, Corporations, panchayats and even the burning ghats to find out fake registration of deaths apparently in order to establish backward linkages of persons whose parents were not registered as voters in 2002 electoral rolls.

According to Government sources, in one district about 11 thousand certificates were found to be fake out of a sample of 47,000. Most number of fake certificates were found in Malda, Murshidabad, two Dinajpurs, two 24 Parganas, Nadia and Birbhum, sources said. For instance, the figure was 16000 in Malda compared to 8,000 in Murshidabad. While North Dinajpur recorded a massive 58,000 issuances, there were about 19,000 fake certificates to be found in North 24 Parganas.

Police raids were conducted in various wards and the central record room in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, sources said, adding the police also raided the registry at burning ghats in Kolkata.  

The Government had received many such complaints, Agarwal said, adding such irregularities were noticed during SIR. “Many people have taken advantage of the situation” bypassing the rules … If anyone has knowingly and deliberately committed fraud, they won’t be spared.”

However, the top official iterated that the “initiative is being undertaken to restore transparency. It will not cause problems for anyone. Those who have obtained genuine birth certificates have no cause for worry or fear.”

Keeping the large-scale malpractices in issuance of birth certificates, the Government has also decided to seize the power of issuing such certificates from the panchayat pradhans, municipal chairmen and even Corporation Mayors. “The officers will issue birth certificates,” the officer said.

In order to prevent fraud, the Government would fully integrate its systems with the central Civil Registration System (CRS) portal, he said, adding the Government would proceed with a humane approach and that no one required to be scared.

Bengal Chief Minister and then the State Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari had earlier said that when his Government would come to power, it would take stock of the situation and weed out all the fake entrants. “The Bangladeshi Rohingya Muslims who have entered the country and legalized their stay through fake birth and death certificates (of their kin) would be found out after the new Government comes to power,” he had earlier said.  

Meanwhile, the Government was planning to bill seizing all the financial powers from the panchayat pradhans, sources said, adding the bill was likely to be tabled on July 25. “The panchayats are a den of corruption … the pradhans and members do not work or work only to make money … this is the reason why everyone wants to become panchayat members more than an MLA or MP … this anomaly has to be eradicated once and for all,” said a state minister.