'Inadvertent errors' led to deletion of voters’ names flagged by TMC, says EC

Kolkata, Jan 5 (PTI) The Election Commission on Monday said that names of three voters, whom TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee claimed were declared “dead” in the draft electoral rolls, were “deleted because of inadvertent errors", a poll panel official said.

Banerjee presented the three voters, including a woman, at a recent rally at Baruipur in South 24 Parganas district, and claimed that the draft electoral rolls showed them as dead.

Following the allegations, the poll body sought detailed reports from Booth Level Officers and the Electoral Registration Officer, a senior official of the state Chief Election Commissioner’s (CEO) office said, adding that the reports were submitted within three days.

“In the three cases of Manirul Mollah, Maya Das and Harekrishna Giri, the deletion of names happened due to inadvertent mistakes and not intentional,” the official said.

“The names of Manirul Mollah and Harekrishna Giri did not figure initially in the deletion lists prepared at the respective booths. However, their names were later found included in the deletion list uploaded on the website,” the official said.

After the matter came to light, the Booth Level Officer concerned visited the residences of both; a form was filled up at their homes, and applications were submitted for re-inclusion of their names in the electoral roll, he said.

He also claimed that the Form-6 applications submitted by Manirul Mollah and Harekrishna Giri had been filed much before the public meeting of Abhishek Banerjee.

“All related documents and procedures of the three were examined, and necessary steps were taken in accordance with the rules,” the official said.

Banerjee, considered number two in the TMC hierarchy, had raised the issue at a public meeting on January 2, alleging irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in the state.

“These three people you are seeing have been declared dead by the Election Commission. The two men are residents of Metiabruz, and the woman is from Kakdwip,” Banerjee had said at the meeting, pointing to the trio.

The Diamond Harbour MP also alleged that there are at least 24 such cases in South 24 Parganas district.

TMC supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on January 3 wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, urging him to rectify alleged glitches in the SIR of electoral rolls or halt the exercise in the state.

The assembly elections in the state are likely to be held in March-April this year. PTI SCH NN