Amid heightened political tension over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, Election Commission’s (EC) fresh data has added momentum to the ongoing debate. According to information placed before the EC during ongoing hearings, more than 11,000 voters have been identified as “illegal” so far in the state.
As per details shared by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), hearings of 9,30,993 voters have been completed till date. Following document verification during these hearings, Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) have identified 11,472 voters as illegal. The commission has stated that the names of these voters will be excluded from the final electoral roll.
The SIR exercise has seen a massive administrative push. A total of 65,78,058 notices have been generated across the state, of which 32,49,091 have already been issued. Hearings have been concluded for a portion of these notice recipients, leading to the current figures on illegal voters.
District-wise data reveals stark variations. Nadia district has reported the highest number, with 9,228 voters identified as illegal. In contrast, despite a large number of notices being generated — 1,36,561 in Kolkata South and 1,63,357 in Bankura — not a single illegal voter has been detected in these two districts so far.
Smaller numbers have emerged from several districts: 10 in Cooch Behar, 4 in Jalpaiguri, 2 each in Darjeeling and Uttar Dinajpur, and 195 in South Dinajpur. The names of 15 voters in Malda, 68 in Murshidabad, 147 in North 24 Parganas, and 69 in South 24 Parganas are set to be excluded.
Urban and semi-urban districts have also featured in the list. Kolkata North has reported 54 illegal voters, Howrah 26, Hooghly 989, and East Midnapore 2. Other districts include West Midnapore (105), Purulia (44), East Burdwan (167), Birbhum (264), Alipurduar (9), Kalimpong (65), Jhargram (3), and West Burdwan (4).
The release of these statistics has intensified the political tussle surrounding the SIR process. While the ruling party continues to question the timing and methodology of the revision, opposition parties argue that the figures validate their claim that fake or illegal voters can indeed be identified through a thorough SIR exercise.
Political observers note that the debate is likely to sharpen further as the process continues. All eyes are now on the final electoral roll, which is expected to reveal whether the number of identified illegal voters rises significantly in the coming weeks.
Also read: Special safeguards sought to protect genuine voters in WB SIR
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