Will move Supreme Court again to oppose removal of electors: Mamata

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee, on Wednesday, slammed the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the deletion of voters’ names and also asserted that her party will move the Supreme Court again to oppose the removal of electors from the rolls.

Banerjee’s remarks came during election rallies in Hooghly’s Arambagh, Balagarh and Sreerampore a day after Election Commission data showed nearly 91 lakh voters have been deleted from the electoral rolls in West Bengal from the original voter base of 7.66 crore in October 2025.

Asserting that the BJP or the poll body will not be able to defeat her party by deleting names. “You will not be able to defeat the TMC by deleting names. We will move the Supreme Court again to resist the exclusion of names.”

“I respect the Supreme Court, but I am not satisfied. When the Supreme Court directed that tribunals be set up and those whose names were cancelled could appeal, how was the voter list for the first phase frozen while the tribunal process is ongoing?” she asked.

“We will fight legally to get the names included on the list. If people cannot cast their votes, what is the need to set up the tribunals?” Banerjee asked. She had argued in the Supreme Court on February 4, urging it to intervene in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to “save democracy”. She had alleged that West Bengal was being targeted in the name of the implementation of SIR. She raised questions as to why the voter list for the first phase of polls in West Bengal was finalised despite the matter being pending before the tribunals.

“What is this? We will challenge it and try to understand it. I am unable to digest this. At times, I feel like going back and start practising law. But I am unable to do that because I am in the chair of the chief minister,” she added.

While addressing a rally at Arambagh, she accused the saffron camp of trying to manipulate electoral rolls and offering money to woo voters. She also alleged that the poll body was intimidating people. “It is working at the behest of the BJP,” she alleged. Addressing a huge gathering at Balagarh, she warned people that voting for the BJP would effectively mean giving up fish and meat.

“People are not allowed to eat eggs, fish, or meat in BJP-ruled states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. The same will happen here if the BJP comes to power,” Banerjee claimed. From the Sreerampore rally, she alleged the BJP was planning to divide Bengal. “The BJP has targeted Bengal. It is conspiring to divide the state again. In the name of delimitation, you (BJP) are planning to carve out another state from Bengal,” she alleged.

Claiming that more than 250 people in Bengal have died due to the SIR process, Banerjee said: “They are conspiring to push those people out of the country whose names have been deleted or put them in detention camps. They are planning to have the NRC here in Bengal after winning the election. But remember that till I am here, I will not allow it.

Alleging the BJP was influencing the media coverage of the assembly elections, she said: “They purchased all the media outlets, and those Godi media are telecasting incorrect reviews. That is actually the BJP’s review. It is because the owners of those media houses are being threatened and intimidated by the BJP.

Earlier in the day after filing her nomination at Alipore Survey building, Banerjee said: “I am sad since the names of countless people have been deleted. Only 32 lakh names have been retained out of 1.2 crore voters.” “This also happened because I filed a case in the Supreme Court. Fifty-eight lakh voters have been deleted in the first phase. That chapter is yet to open. Of course, some voters who are duplicate or deceased will be removed,” she added.

She further maintained: “More than 27 lakh voters who are under adjudication are yet to be retained in the electoral list. I am of the opinion that they should be given voting rights. The Supreme Court has also said that those who are under adjudication are genuine voters. People who are yet to be retained will appeal to the tribunal. What is the point of keeping the process frozen? We will take necessary actions.”