In New Delhi on December 3, the West Bengal Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, sent a letter to the Election Commission of India (ECI) demanding that it take steps to “protect” the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) as hearings on draft electoral rolls begin.
The BJP’s front‑line spokesperson asked the commission to act “immediately” and create a team of “Micro Observers” to cover the hearings where voters will present “claims, objections and document submission” for adding, deleting or correcting names on the draft list. He added that those observers should come from Central government staff to keep the process impartial.
Adhikari warned that state officials might be manipulating the rolls and that many reports of undue influence on this stage have surfaced.
Since the start of the SIR this year, the procedure itself has attracted political fire. Although the ECI maintains that the review is impartial, opposition parties allege it is being abused and that legitimate voters are being sidelined. The narrative around possible Bangladeshi infiltration has only amplified the controversy.
The ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal has launched widespread anti‑SIR protests led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. They allege that many Booth Level Officers (BLOs) frequently fall ill—or even die—due to work pressure, and that some voters have taken their own lives out of fear of losing their voting rights.
The election authority has defended the SIR process, dismissing claims of mass disenfranchisement as politically driven. The Supreme Court remains engaged in the debate, while the ECI has described the allegations as “highly exaggerated” and motivated by politics. According to the commission, 99 % of the state’s voters have already received enumeration forms.
Amid these tensions, reports emerged that Bangladeshi nationals were trying to leave from the West Bengal border, a development that has further sharpened the political discourse around infiltration during the SIR exercise.
Adhikari insists that the second phase of SIR is the most critical point in the entire process. “This phase will determine whether the final electoral roll is fair, accurate, and free from manipulation,” he said. jb/dan
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