Political row erupts as dead voters found in ‘BJP-ruled Panchayat areas in Malda’
Malda: A fresh political storm has broken out in Malda district after nearly 50 deceased voters were allegedly found listed in the latest electoral rolls of Habibpur block. The names were detected in the tribal-dominated villages of Bolidanga and Manikora in the Baidyapur region, located along the India-Bangladesh border under Habibpur Assembly constituency.
The revelation has caused uproar among local residents, who expressed frustration over the Election Commission’s apparent negligence.
“We had reported to officials several times that these voters have passed away. Yet their names remain. Why are they still in the rolls and who casts votes on their behalf?” asked some villager from Bolidanga.
The Opposition BJP has seized upon the issue, claiming it reflects a larger pattern across Bengal.
Habibpur’s BJP MLA Joyel Murmu accused the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of deliberately retaining “ghost voters” to swing polls. “From one end of the state to the other, dead voters’ names are being discovered. In my constituency alone, nearly 50 such names appear in the new list. Those resisting Special Intensive Revision (SIR) are the same people protecting ghost voters,” Murmu said.
The Trinamool Congress, however, firmly rejected the charge. Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury, state secretary of TMC and Chairman of English Bazar Municipality, countered that voter list management is entirely the Election Commission’s responsibility.
“Adding or deleting names has nothing to do with political parties. In that Panchayat, the control is with BJP—the MLA is BJP, and the MP is also BJP. If ghost voters are there, everyone knows who stands to benefit. BJP is raising false allegations to cover up its own misdeeds,” Choudhury retorted.
The discovery has reignited the sensitive debate on electoral credibility in Bengal.
With the state moving closer to elections, the ghost voter controversy threatens to deepen political polarisation, while villagers continue demanding accountability and a transparent revision of voter rolls.
