‘Poriborton Yatra’ begins in Bengal
Cooch Behar/Krishnanagar/Garbeta: In a synchronised political offensive launched a day after the publication of West Bengal’s post-SIR electoral rolls, the BJP on Sunday sought to convert the deletion of names into its central political plank, alleging that “over 50 lakh infiltrators” had been weeded out and declaring that “time is up for illegal immigrants” in the state.
Flagging off the party’s 5,000-km ‘Poriborton Yatra’ from multiple districts, BJP national president Nitin Nabin claimed in Cooch Behar that most of those removed from the rolls were “infiltrators” who had secured fake documents, availed government jobs and cornered welfare benefits meant for genuine citizens.
After the 2019 surge and the 2021 setback, the West Bengal BJP launched ‘Poriborton Yatra’, its most expansive statewide mobilisation in recent years, in a bid to revive momentum, sharpen anti-incumbency against the TMC and test its rebuilt grassroots machinery ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls. “More than 50 lakh infiltrators have been removed from the voter list. These infiltrators were not only violating the rights of legitimate citizens, but also jeopardising the security of the country,” he said, sharpening the party’s citizenship narrative barely two months before the Assembly polls.
The EC’s data, released Saturday, showed that 63.66 lakh names, around 8.3 per cent of the electorate, have been deleted since the SIR began in November, reducing the voter base from 7.66 crore to just over 7.04 crore.
The 116-day exercise, the first intensive revision since 2002, had already pruned over 58 lakh names in the draft rolls published on December 16 on grounds such as death, migration, duplication and untraceability. Following hearings and disposal of claims and objections, another 5.46 lakh deletions were recorded through Form-7 applications.
