The All India Trinamool Congress on Monday expressed dissatisfaction after a meeting with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, who is currently in West Bengal to review the state’s preparedness for the upcoming Assembly elections. While the TMC alleged that its concerns over the SIR exercise were not adequately addressed during the interaction with the Election Commission, the Bharatiya Janata Party urged the poll body to conduct the elections in a maximum of three phases.
The meeting was attended by Kumar along with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, as well as West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal. Representatives of various political parties met the Commission at a hotel in New Town near Kolkata as part of the EC’s consultations ahead of the state polls.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said the three-member delegation of the party was told that since the TMC has approached the Supreme Court on the issue, the matter would be decided there and the Election Commission had nothing further to add.
"I am a woman, and I was told 'don't shout'. Why should I not raise my voice when we are speaking about people's rights?" Bhattacharya said, alleging that the Commission repeatedly cited the matter being sub judice in the Supreme Court whenever they attempted to raise concerns over the SIR exercise.
"Whenever we spoke about SIR, they said the matter is in the Supreme Court. If that is the case, why did they call us for the meeting? When they have invited us, they must listen to what we have to say," she added.
Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, who was also part of the TMC delegation, claimed that a "false perception" was being created about the presence of infiltrators in West Bengal, which he said was leading to harassment of genuine Indian citizens.
"Over the last two months, not a single infiltrator or Rohingya has been identified, but ordinary Indian citizens are being harassed and forced to prove their nationality," he claimed.
The TMC delegation maintained that the duration of the Assembly election was not a major concern for the party.
In contrast, the BJP delegation urged the Election Commission to limit the 2026 West Bengal Assembly election to not more than three phases and to ensure a violence-free polling process.
BJP leader Jagannath Chattopadhyay, who was part of the party’s three-member delegation that met the Commission, said the party had requested the poll body to keep the election schedule within three phases.
"We demanded a one, two or three-phase election, but not more," he said.
The BJP delegation also submitted a 16-point charter of demands, raising concerns about the security environment in the state ahead of the polls.
One of the key issues flagged by the party was the deployment and utilisation of nearly 400 companies of central forces currently stationed in the state. Chattopadhyay criticised the role of the state police in directing these forces, alleging that the existing "confidence-building measures" were failing to reassure voters.
He also claimed that route marches were being conducted in relatively peaceful areas instead of sensitive locations.
"Our first demand is to conduct the election in one, two or at most three-phase election. There is no need for seven or eight-phase election," he told reporters.
