Cooch Behar/Siliguri: The publication of the draft electoral roll under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has triggered political controversy and public anxiety in parts of North Bengal, with the Trinamool Congress (TMC) alleging that several living voters have been wrongly marked as deceased, potentially disenfranchising genuine electors.
In Cooch Behar district, the issue snowballed into a political uproar on Tuesday after district TMC president Abhijit Dey Bhowmik accused the Election Commission of serious lapses in the revision process. Addressing a press conference, Bhowmik claimed that multiple living voters had been declared dead in the draft list. To substantiate the allegation, he appeared alongside Ashwini Adhikari and his wife, Shivani Adhikari, residents of Falimari Gram Panchayat under the Cooch Behar South Assembly constituency, both of whom were allegedly shown as deceased despite being alive.
Bhowmik said similar discrepancies had surfaced in other parts of the district. He cited cases including Alima Bibi from the Natabari Assembly constituency and Khadija Khatun and Rahul Hossain from Mathabhanga Block II, who were also allegedly marked as deceased in the draft roll. Terming the matter “gross negligence,” he alleged that the errors were deliberate and aimed at disenfranchising voters. Claiming a political conspiracy, he said the Commission was acting under pressure from the BJP, resulting in arbitrary deletions of legitimate voters’ names. According to him, around 1.13 lakh names were removed from the draft list in the district, though he expressed hope that 30,000 to 35,000 names would be restored after corrections.
Meanwhile, a similar incident surfaced in the Siliguri subdivision, adding to public concern. Panic gripped 58-year-old voter Shibani Paul of Vivekananda Pally in Bagdogra after she discovered that her name had been marked as deceased in the draft list released on Monday. Shibani, who votes at Gandhi Smriti Primary School, said she had submitted the SIR form along with all required documents to the Booth Level Officer (BLO).
“I have my voter card, Aadhaar card and all valid documents. I filled up the form correctly. I don’t understand how this happened,” she said, expressing fear of harassment while seeking correction. The local BLO, Pranab Kumar Saha, denied forwarding her name to any ‘deceased list’ and said he would take up the matter with higher authorities.