There is mixed reaction from political parties in Bengal on SIR exercise order.

Kolkata, Oct 27 (IANS) The Election Commission of India (ECI)’s announcement of special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls for 12 Indian states, including West Bengal, has drawn mixed reactions from leaders of various political parties in the state.

Trinamool Congress has threatened to launch a massive protest in front of the ECI office if the name of even a single genuine voter in West Bengal is removed from the list.

“We are also in favor of error-free voter list. But if the name of even a single genuine voter is removed from the voter list after SIR, a protest will be held before the ECI by a gathering of 1,00,000 people. However, I request the people of West Bengal not to fall prey to any provocation, and a legal battle will be fought in case of any irregularity in the name of SIR.” General Secretary Kunal Ghosh said.

At the time of filing this report, there was no response from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee or Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.

BJP’s West Bengal unit president and Rajya Sabha member Samik Bhattacharya said the SIR is not only to include eligible voters but is also a right step to protect the democratic system.

“But unfortunately, the Trinamool Congress is distorting the process for its own political interests. Desperate attempts are being made to include the names of Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltrators in the voter list. On the other hand, the ruling party in the state is deliberately trying to exclude the names of genuine Indian citizens, especially Hindu refugees and common voters, so that the Trinamool Congress remains a fake vote bank.” Bhattacharya said.

State Congress president Suvankar Sarkar criticized the ECI for not holding discussions with political parties.

The government said, “It is unfortunate that the ECI announced the SIR dates ignoring Congress’s long-standing demand to convene an all-party meeting with all recognized parties before the announcement. What the Election Commission wants to establish is not in the interest of the country’s democracy.”

CPI-M politburo member and state secretary Mohammad Salim said the ECI itself has admitted that the current voter list is full of errors.

Salim said, “Have they been sleeping for so many years? We have been saying for years that the names of those who have died should be removed.”

–IANS

Source/PGH