Trinamool Congress (TMC) National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee issued a sharp warning to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday, threatening large-scale protests, including a potential gherao of the ECI office, if voters in West Bengal are disenfranchised through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Speaking to reporters outside Kolkata airport, Banerjee accused the ECI of undermining democratic principles by rushing the SIR process, which he claims is designed to suppress voters and favour the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Banerjee questioned the feasibility of completing the SIR, an extensive voter list verification process, in just one month when previous exercises of this nature, such as the one conducted between 2002 and 2004, took over two years. He argued that if the same voter list used for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections was flawed, then that raises questions about the legitimacy of elected officials, including the Prime Minister and Home Minister. “If the voter list is illegitimate, then the MPs, the President, and the Vice President elected on its basis are also illegitimate,” Banerjee stated, emphasising the gravity of the issue.
The TMC leader accused the ECI of acting as a compliant arm of the BJP, mockingly referring to it as a “Yes Sir” office that follows orders from the ruling party’s leadership. “We say, No SIR,” Banerjee declared, rejecting the SIR exercise and vowing to protect every voter’s right to participate in the democratic process. He warned that any attempt to disenfranchise even a single voter would lead to TMC-led protests, including surrounding the ECI office to demand accountability.
Banerjee’s remarks align with broader concerns raised by opposition parties, particularly in the context of the SIR exercise in Bihar, which has sparked protests for potentially targeting marginalised communities. The TMC has been vocal in its criticism of the ECI, with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee previously warning of demonstrations if the voter list is tampered with.
“How is it possible to carry out an exercise in one month which otherwise takes two years. The last SIR happened in 2002 and the results came out in 2004. And on the basis of this voter list, the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have happened. So by that logic the prime minister, the home minister are illegitimate. There are MPs elected, all on the basis of this voter list. MPs then elect President and the Vice President- then the whole leadership is illegitimate. Basically they have tested and tried everything possible in Bengal and yet they have lost every election. Thus they have conspired to get voters disenfranchised to win elections. We will not let a single voter to be disenfranchised. If a single person is disenfranchised the we will gherao the office of Election Commission,” Banerjee said.
On Thursday, Congress Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, amplified these concerns by presenting evidence of alleged “vote theft” in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura assembly constituency. Gandhi claimed his party’s independent investigation uncovered over one lakh manipulated votes, including duplicate voters, fake addresses, and misuse of voter registration forms, allegedly facilitated by the ECI to benefit the BJP. His allegations, supported by a detailed PowerPoint presentation, have fuelled opposition outrage, with Gandhi describing the issue as an “atom bomb on our democracy.” The same evening, Gandhi hosted a dinner meeting at his New Delhi residence, attended by approximately 50 leaders from 25 INDIA bloc parties, including Banerjee, Sharad Pawar (NCP-SP), Akhilesh Yadav (SP), and Uddhav Thackeray (Shiv Sena-UBT). The meeting focused on the SIR controversy and Gandhi’s claims of electoral fraud, with Gandhi reiterating his evidence of voter manipulation in Karnataka and Maharashtra. “We met yesterday and I advised mr Gandhi that since they have their government in Karnatak, then they should take action against the then BLO and other officials responsible for such voter list manipulation. We also suggested that if need be, there should be a protest against former CEC Rajiv Kumar”, said Abhishek Banerjee.
