Kolkata, Nov 8
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has written a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, saying the Election Commission of India (ECI) is inconsistent about who counts as a “relative” in the current special intensive revision (SIR) of voter rolls that began on 4 November.
In the note, TMC criticizes the ECI for “speaking in two voices” on the issue. The party cites a statement by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on 27 October, in which he said candidates could list an uncle or other relatives on the SIR form. But TMC points out that the written instructions sent to booth‑level officers (BLOs) and the BLO software itself only allow “parent” and “grandparent” entries.
The TMC letter shows the current BLO app’s dropdown menu: “son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, and transgender.” No option appears for “brother, sister, uncle, or any other blood relation.” This mismatch, the party says, has thrown BLOs into confusion and caused panic among voters.
On Saturday, TMC issued a public statement demanding clarity. “This contradiction has left BLOs across Bengal in paralysis and created panic among voters,” the party said. “If the CEC’s statement is genuine, then why has the ECI not acted on it? If it isn’t, why mislead the nation on national television?” TMC’s statement calls for the ECI to either implement what the CEC said or stop pretending to be neutral.
“We will not stay silent while the rules are twisted to suit one side,” the TMC added, accusing the ECI of misleading the public and jeopardizing the integrity of the voter register in West Bengal.
Source: ianslive
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