Kolkata: Congress and Trinamool on Tuesday questioned the Election Commission’s (EC) decision to launch a proactive campaign to ensure that no eligible voter is excluded from electoral rolls, alleging that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bengal was rushed through before the assembly elections, resulting in the deletion of eligible voters.Trinamool questioned why the EC had not taken similar steps before the elections and demanded accountability over alleged discrepancies in the revision process.“Where was this proactiveness before the elections? Why was the SIR process in Bengal conducted in such a rushed and unplanned manner?” the party asked in a post on X, questioning the integrity, fairness and impartiality of the exercise.The party alleged that the SIR, conducted on the grounds of logical discrepancies, deprived eligible citizens of their voting rights. It also accused the EC of colluding with the BJP to help it win seats it otherwise could not have secured.Questioning the legitimacy of the govt formed after the elections, Trinamool said the EC must address the discrepancies and fix accountability instead of expecting citizens to accept the process without question.“Nothing illegal lasts forever. Neither will the BJP government,” the party said.Meanwhile, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh, sharing a screenshot of a press release issued by the office of the chief electoral officer (CEO), Bengal, criticised CEC Gyanesh Kumar.“After having delivered the assembly election to BJP in a brazenly fraudulent manner, the CEC has had this Press Note issued. There is no limit to Gyanesh Kumar’s shamelessness,” Ramesh said.According to the CEO’s office, district election officers (DEOs) across Bengal have begun a proactive campaign to identify eligible voters whose names were deleted during the SIR and facilitate their inclusion in the electoral rolls.The office said all 24 DEOs had launched the initiative in accordance with EC instructions. Special camps are being held across the state, while people with complaints have been asked to contact their respective booth-level officers (BLOs), assistant electoral registration officers (AEROs), electoral registration officers (EROs) or DEOs.“We are committed to ensure that no eligible voter is excluded from the voter list,” the statement said.
