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Kolkata, Oct 27 (IANS) The dates for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) for states which are scheduled to hold assembly elections next year, including West Bengal, are expected to be announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday.
The ECI has called a press conference at 4.30 pm at its headquarters in New Delhi, where the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) is likely to announce the names of the states where the exercise will be conducted in the immediate phase.
Although the SIR will be conducted at the national level, as indicated by the ECI, in the immediate phase, the exercise will be conducted for states where assembly elections are scheduled next year. So, as per that pattern, it is expected that SIR dates will be announced on Monday for four states, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Assam, as these states are scheduled to go to the assembly elections next year.
The SIR date for Union Territory Puducherry, where assembly elections are also scheduled next year, is also likely to be announced on Monday.
SIR has already been completed in the case of Bihar, where two-phase assembly elections are due next month.
Unlike the other states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Assam, SIR has been a controversial issue in West Bengal since its inception on several grounds, with different political parties holding different views on the practice.
The ruling Trinamool Congress is against the idea of conducting this exercise and has been consistently claiming that the SIR is an indirect ploy by the central government and the BJP to implement NRC in West Bengal.
On the other hand, the BJP has claimed that the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal is opposing the SIR because they fear that the names of illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltrators will be removed from the voter list.
The CPI(M)-led Left Front, although it is not primarily against the conduct of this exercise, has claimed that names of genuine voters should not be removed from the voter list as a result of this exercise. There have also been controversies over the appointments of Booth Level Officer (BLO) and Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) in West Bengal.
The last time SIR was conducted in West Bengal was in 2002.
–IANS
Source/DPB