West Bengal politics has once again heated up with allegations of a “voter list conspiracy.” The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has accused the Election Commission of large-scale irregularities in the recently published voter list, claiming that thousands of names mysteriously disappeared. At a press conference on Thursday, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh and state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya alleged that there are major discrepancies between the hard copy of the 2002 voter list and the version currently available on the Election Commission’s website.
According to the TMC, in Guma-1 Gram Panchayat under Habra-2 Block of the Ashoknagar Assembly constituency in North 24 Parganas, the commission’s website shows no voters in booth number 159. However, the 2002 voter list reportedly contained the names of nearly 900 voters. Similar omissions have allegedly occurred in Cooch Behar, where 400 to 900 names have vanished from several booths.
Ghosh did not mince words, accusing the opposition of electoral fraud.
“They are quietly rigging — silent rigging is going on,” he said, adding, “In one area, there were 717 names in the 2002 list, and now there are only 140. So many people can’t die together! How are names disappearing before the Summary Revision?”
He further alleged that the omissions were deliberate and politically motivated. “This was done sitting in the BJP office, and the commission uploaded that data only. Otherwise, how are BJP leaders predicting in advance that so many names will be omitted?” Ghosh questioned.
The TMC has filed complaints with the Election Commission and urged its party workers to monitor every booth closely. “We will not allow the name of even a single valid voter to be deleted,” Ghosh warned. “Cross-check every house and compare with the old list. This is a calculated attempt to tamper with democracy.”
Echoing his sentiments, Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya claimed that the manipulation has even created internal rifts within the BJP. “While trying to rig the voter list, they have mistakenly removed the names of some of their own people,” she said. “Now they are stuck and claiming that the commission’s website has crashed. We demand a full and transparent investigation.”
The Election Commission is yet to respond to the allegations, while political observers say all eyes are now on the BJP’s reaction. As tensions rise, Bengal’s political atmosphere appears set for another round of confrontation over electoral integrity and transparency.
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