A brewing storm over voter list revisions in West Bengal has BJP’s Dilip Ghosh unleashing a tirade against the Mamata Banerjee government. Labeling the unrest as state-sponsored, Ghosh warned that without a flawless Special Intensive Revision (SIR), no polls should proceed.
Protests have convulsed the state, with epicenters in places like Hooghly’s Mogra. BJP cadres, seeking to file Form 7, faced hostile TMC mobs at government offices, fueling demands for CAPF escort. The previous day’s chaos at the BDO office exemplifies the risks ordinary citizens face.
In forthright remarks, Ghosh questioned: ‘Why this violence only in Bengal during a national process? The government controls everything—booth-level officers, police—yet fails spectacularly.’ He decried the reliance on courts for basic rights, portraying a state adrift without rule of law.
Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari spotlighted the arrest of innocent Amit Mandal, a panchayat elected official, merely for participating in SIR. ‘TMC-orchestrated police brutality ridicules the Election Commission and erodes democratic foundations.’
TMC’s parallel agitations accuse BJP of foul play, but the opposition remains unrelenting. This SIR imbroglio reveals fault lines in Bengal’s polity: allegations of voter fraud versus cries of political vendetta. As deadlines approach, stakeholders watch warily. Robust intervention is imperative to salvage electoral credibility and restore public faith in the system.