SUCI(Communist) write to CEC on discrepancies in SIR exercise in West Bengal
SUCI(Communist) write to CEC on discrepancies in SIR exercise in West Bengal
New Delhi, April 1
The West Bengal State Committee of the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist), has written an open letter to the Chief Election Commissioner of India to draw his attention to the grave and unprecedented harassment of citizens caused by the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process conducted by the Election Commission in West Bengal. The assembly polls are scheduled to be held on April 23 and 29.
The SUCI (Communist ) wrote that the nature of the SIR process initiated in West Bengal requires at least a year to be conducted, completed properly and fairly. But, the Election Commission chose to complete this exercise within a mere three months for the reason best known to the CEC.
“However, in forcing such hurried implementation, your Commission issued diktats that imposed unbearable workloads on Booth Level Officers (BLOs). As a result, many BLOs fell seriously ill and even died, while some, unable to withstand the work pressure and threats from the Commission, were driven to suicide or died due to heart failure. We feel the responsibility for these deaths must squarely rest with the Election Commission. Till now, citizens whose names were already included in the electoral rolls were never required to fill up any forms. Under the SIR introduced by you, millions of people working far away from their homes were forced to abandon their livelihoods and rush back just to fill up enumeration forms. Although online facilities were later introduced, they did not in any way reduce the harassment faced by marginalised sections of society, particularly the migrant workers of the State. Thereafter, your Commission initiated an even more alarming process — the merciless “hearing” of 13.6 million people. Reports in the media have shown how octogenarians, critically ill patients brought in ambulances, and pregnant women were subjected to extreme harassment without exception. After receiving hearing notices, many people, gripped by fear of losing their citizenship and voting rights, suffered heart attacks, died, or were driven to suicide. The Election Commission must also accept responsibility for these deaths. Yet, the Commission did not even express minimal regret over these tragic outcomes,” the party wrote.
The letter further said that “surpassing all previous measures, in this phase of the SIR you have introduced a new term —“logical discrepancy” — unheard of in the long history of the Election Commission. In the name of identifying such so-called discrepancies, nearly 6 million people have been pushed into an “under adjudication” status for absurd reasons such as minor spelling errors in names on the voter list. In this context, the conduct of micro-observers appointed by the Election Commission from outside the state is also not beyond suspicion. Moreover, even before the adjudication process regarding inclusion or exclusion of names was completed, you announced the election schedule and election codes. On the very day of announcing the elections, how could you declare that “no genuine citizen’s name will be deleted”? Is this not a deception practiced upon the people?”
The SUCI (Communist ) stated that as a final outcome of the wrongful actions of the Election Commission, the Hon’ble Supreme Court has been compelled to appoint judges to decide, on the basis of documents demanded by the Commission itself, whether affected persons’ names should remain on the voter rolls — and that too within an extremely short time frame. Given the scale of the issue, this is practically impossible to complete in due process. Those whose names are being deleted are lakhs of marginalised people — slum dwellers, Dalits, Matua community members, women, and minorities. They are being forced to approach tribunals.The past experience clearly shows that such tribunals involve prolonged processes and enormous expenses.
The letter pointed out that among those pushed towards tribunals is former SUCI (Communist) Member of Parliament Tarun Mondal, who served for many years as Chief Medical Officer under the Central Government’s CGHS. Along with him are former judges, senior government officials, election officers, university professors, and many other distinguished individuals. By keeping millions of genuine citizens under adjudication or forcing them towards tribunals, you are effectively moving to deprive them of their voting rights. Yet, you have offered no answers to these questions, evasively stating that the matter is “sub judice.” Thus, instead of ensuring the democratic right to vote, the Election Commission itself is effectively snatching away that right.
A party delegation met the Assistant Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal on 28 March and sought clarification on how citizens whose names were deleted by the Commission would be able to justify their right to vote in such short period. He offered no solution and merely advised approaching tribunals. He could not even assure whether tribunal decisions would be delivered before the elections. In that case, are you not yourself violating your own assurance that “no genuine citizen’s name will be deleted”?
The letter further stated that two decades ago in Assam, the Election Commission, in the name of removing foreigners, stamped millions of voters as “Doubtful Voters” (D-voters) and deprived them of their voting rights, thereafter washing its hands of responsibility by pushing them towards tribunals. As a consequence, many people were incarcerated in brutally inhuman detention camps, and after long legal struggles, many were finally proven to be genuine citizens. During the SIR in Bihar last year, BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah had used the phrase “Detect, Delete, Deport.”
“Given this background, would it be entirely wrong if people believe that by performing the act of “deletion,” your Election Commission is becoming a partner in a conspiracy aimed at branding citizens as non-citizens and pushing them towards detention camps? We expect a clear answer to this from you before the people of this state.” The party alleged.
“Finally, our unequivocal demand to the Election Commission is this: since you are unable to ensure the voting rights of genuine citizens through the voter list prepared under the SIR, elections must be conducted on the basis of the 2025 electoral roll, after excluding only the deceased and duplicate entries, and duly including all new voters who have already submitted Form 6. We expect that, while holding the constitutional office of Chief Election Commissioner, you will acknowledge the legitimacy of our proposal and fulfill your constitutional responsibility by ensuring the voting rights of all citizens,” letter said.
