Bengal BJP demands fresh electoral roll revision, cites intimidation claims

Samik Bhattacharya, BJP MP and West Bengal unit president, on Saturday pressed for a fresh Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the state's electoral rolls, contending that the exercise conducted before the assembly elections had significant gaps. Speaking at the inaugural meeting of a contractual workers' trade union at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, Bhattacharya alleged that officials ranging from block development officers to anganwadi workers faced intimidation during the previous SIR, preventing the deletion of additional voter names from the rolls.

"The Special Intensive Revision held in West Bengal is incomplete," Bhattacharya said. "On behalf of the BJP, I want to say that there is a need for a fresh SIR in the state." The BJP leader highlighted a perceived disparity in electoral preparation across states, noting that Bihar conducted an SIR before holding assembly elections, while Haryana and Delhi proceeded to polls without such an exercise—both states where the BJP achieved electoral success.

The SIR process, used to update and verify voter registration lists, had resulted in the deletion of approximately 91 lakh names from Bengal's electoral rolls. Bhattacharya's remarks suggest party concerns about the integrity and completeness of the voter verification exercise in the state.