Suvendu slams TMC over SIR, alleges BLO–BDO nexus

Kolkata, Nov 17 (PTI) Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Monday criticised the TMC government over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging a "deep nexus involving a section of BLOs and BDOs" aimed at helping the Trinamool Congress "sabotage" the Election Commission's efforts to weed out "fake voters, illegal migrants".

Addressing a press conference at the state BJP headquarters, Adhikari said the SIR exercise had triggered "panic" within the TMC, prompting "abusive comments and open threats", and accused the administration of resisting the EC's scrutiny.

Keeping the focus on Bengal, he alleged that the revision process had been met with hostility ever since enumeration began..

The chief minister and her party colleagues "began hurling abuses", including remarks such as "we will tie them up to a tree", and Mamata Banerjee publicly objected to 1,000 Booth Level Officers being trained by the Election Commission "without her consent", he alleged.

The Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly alleged systematic attempts to derail the process on the ground, claiming a "close nexus between I-PAC, some BLOs and certain BDOs".

He said the Tamluk BDO was "misleading BLOs regarding dead and shifted voters", and that in North 24 Parganas district, the SIR in-charge was "forcing BLOs to distribute forms even at vacated addresses".

He urged the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) to open a helpline as "many BLOs are not providing enumeration forms for political reasons".

BLOs must report death and shifted voters as "unaccounted" on the BLO app, he insisted, demanding that all withheld forms be delivered within 48 hours "so that not a single legal voter is left out".

He claimed the BJP had submitted a list of 13.25 lakh "fake voters" and alleged that in 20 Assembly constituencies, 50 to 150 "death voters" were found in each booth.

Reiterating the party's position on citizenship, he said: "Legal refugees will be given CAA citizenship. Infiltrators will have their names deleted".

He claimed falsification of birth certificates was being facilitated by "some BMOHs and pradhans" and urged the poll panel to act.

The EC, he said, should cross-check burial ground records, data from the 'Samabyathi' app and pension rolls to determine the "actual number of death voters".

"A fair voter list must come out. Free and fair elections are what the people of Bengal demand," he added. PTI PNT RG