Opposition political parties and civil society representatives have come together to form a joint platform demanding the restoration of voting rights for eligible citizens whose names were deleted from West Bengal’s electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Named ‘Sara Bangla Voteadhikar Raksha Juktamanch’ (All-Bengal Joint Platform for the Protection of Voting Rights), the platform was formally launched on Saturday. It has announced a convention in Kolkata on November 21, bringing together political parties, civil society organisations and citizens who allege they were unfairly excluded from the electoral rolls.
The convention is expected to discuss a broader movement to protect voting rights and decide on its future course of action.
Platform Raises Six Questions Over SIR Process
At its launch, the platform raised six key questions concerning the SIR exercise and called on the Supreme Court, the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the West Bengal government to explain the alleged irregularities and take responsibility.
One of its main concerns is the reported pendency of 37 lakh appeals before appellate tribunals. The platform questioned how long the appeals would take to be resolved and whether the more than 22 lakh people who have challenged their exclusion would be able to vote in the upcoming municipal and panchayat elections.
It also sought clarification over the filing of more than 16 lakh objections against names already included in the electoral rolls, reportedly through the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal. The platform questioned who authorised the process and who would be held accountable.
Other concerns include the number of eligible voters restored to the electoral rolls through Form 6 during the Election Commission’s special enrolment drive and who would be responsible if eligible citizens remained excluded during the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.
The platform also questioned the alleged removal of people excluded from electoral rolls from government welfare beneficiary lists. It argued that deletion from the voter list should not, by itself, be treated as proof that a person has lost Indian citizenship or is ineligible for welfare schemes.
Jawhar Sircar Questions Delay in Appeals
Former IAS officer and former Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar said the platform had sought answers from the Supreme Court, the Election Commission and the state government on the six issues.
“We have sought responses from the Supreme Court, the Election Commission and the state government regarding six critical issues concerning the SIR process. There are 37 lakh appeals pending before the appellate tribunals. How much longer will it take to resolve them? Furthermore, will the more than 22 lakh individuals who have challenged their exclusion from the electoral rolls lose their right to vote in the upcoming municipal and panchayat elections?” Sircar asked.
Congress leader Prasenjit Basu questioned the authorisation behind the filing of more than 16 lakh objections against voters whose names were already on the electoral rolls. He also demanded details of how many eligible voters had been reinstated through Form 6 during the special enrolment drive.
TMC, CPM Leaders Call for Wider Movement
Trinamool Congress leader Basundhara Goswami said the platform should also examine alleged irregularities during the vote-counting process on May 4.
She called on candidates from different political parties to come together to document what she described as “vote looting” and alleged organised vote-rigging by the BJP during counting.
CPM leader Kallol Majumdar said the platform had been formed to organise protests against the alleged disenfranchisement of eligible citizens through the SIR exercise. He said its immediate priority was to bring the issue of protecting voting rights into public discussion.
Human rights activist Sujata Bhadra stressed the need to bring political parties and other stakeholders onto a common platform to build a united movement for the restoration of people’s rights.
