The Bengal draft electoral rolls were published by the Election Commission after a Special Intensive Revision, triggering political backlash across the state. On Tuesday, the Election Commission published the draft electoral rolls for West Bengal as a result of its Special Intensive Revision activities and received sharp backlash from most political parties and organizations across the state about the release. The release was made weeks before the upcoming Assembly elections scheduled for early next year, and after much public concern about the deletion of names from the electoral rolls by the Election Commission. Official statistics show that the Commission removed over 58 lakh names from the electoral rolls for a variety of reasons.
The Commission has indicated that the current draft electoral rolls for West Bengal reflect just over 7.08 crore registered voters, down from approximately 7.66 crore registered voters prior to the completion of the Special Intensive Revision exercise. The Election Commission continues to ask voters to confirm their eligibility to vote and also urges voters to take part in the claims process. As a result, voters’ confidence in the validity and integrity of the election process and electoral rolls in West Bengal will be at the forefront of this election cycle.
Why large-scale deletions in Bengal draft electoral rolls drew attention
The Election Commission stated that the primary reason for the deletion of these records was that the enumeration forms received by SIR could not able to be verified, and therefore they could not be collected. The data that was released by the Chief Electoral Officer’s office contains records of over 24 lakh voters having been marked deceased, nearly 20 lakh having been permanently relocated, 12.2 lakh that could not be located or traced at their registered address, and 1.3 lakh duplicate entries, as well as approximately 1.8 lakh so-called ghost voters. To promote transparency, the Election Commission has posted booth-wise lists of deleted names, along with an explanation regarding why they were deleted, on its respective websites. In addition to these, the Election Commission also provided both hard copies and electronic copies of the draft rolls to both recognised political parties and Booth Level Officers.
Hearings, political reactions, and next steps
Manoj Kumar Agarwal, the Chief Electoral Officer, commented that there are approximately 1.36 crore potential voters for whom hearings are possible. However, following a review of the applications, this figure may decrease. He stated that applicants will have an opportunity to present their documents, as well as to provide explanations for any exceptional circumstances preventing them from completing their application.
The Commission further indicated that simply having one’s name removed from the draft roll does not impede voting rights. From December 16 through January 15, the Commission will accept claims and objections. Political parties are increasingly using the publication of the draft roll to broaden their political divides; the Trinamool Congress claims voter impersonation is widespread, while the BJP denies the accusations. Opposition parties have demanded that safeguards be put in place, but the Commission has asked that voters check their information through the Internet or through local authorities prior to the release of the final rolls in February.
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