In a sharply worded letter to Chief Election Commissioner of India, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee warned that the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls has reached a “deeply alarming stage” due to its “unplanned, chaotic and dangerous” execution, noting that several BLOs have died since the process began and calling the compressed three-month timeline, normally a three-year exercise,” inhuman” and “dangerously coercive.”
In her letter addressed to Chief Election Commissioner of India Gyanesh Kumar, Banerjee said she had repeatedly flagged concerns about the SIR but was now “compelled to write” as the situation had deteriorated further.
The concerns highlighted by Mamata Banerjee come amid reports of mounting stress and tragedy among Booth Level Officers. In Jalpaiguri, Shanti Muni Oraon, a tribal woman working at an ICDS centre in Mal and responsible for distributing enumeration forms at Booth 101 of the Rangamati gram panchayat, died by suicide, with her body found in the courtyard of her home.
In a similar incident, another BLO, Namita Hansda from East Burdwan, who worked at the Memari community block, died of a cerebral attack on November 9; her husband alleged she had been under severe stress due to the SIR workload.
She criticised the manner in which the exercise was being “forced upon officials and citizens,” saying the absence of basic preparedness, proper planning, and clear communication had “crippled the process from day one.”
Banerjee expressed serious concern over the condition of Booth Level Officers (BLOs), who she said were “operating far beyond human limits,” juggling their regular duties with door-to-door surveys and complex online submissions without adequate training or support.
“The unrealistic workload, impossible timelines, and inadequate support have collectively placed the entire process, and its credibility, at severe risk. This strikes at the heart of our electoral democracy,” she wrote.
The Chief Minister warned that at the current pace, it was “almost certain” that voter data could not be uploaded accurately by the December 4 deadline. Even more troubling, she said, was that many BLOs, facing extreme pressure and “fear of punitive action,” were being pushed into filing incorrect or incomplete entries, potentially leading to the “disenfranchisement of genuine voters.”
Banerjee accused the Election Commission of responding with “intimidation rather than support,” alleging that the CEO’s office in West Bengal had begun issuing show-cause notices without justification.
“Instead of extending timelines or addressing systemic flaws, BLOs, already stretched and distressed, are being threatened with severe disciplinary action,” she said.
She also called the timing of the revision “indefensible,” noting that West Bengal is currently in the peak period of paddy harvest and time-bound Rabi sowing. “Millions of farmers and labourers are engaged in essential agricultural work and cannot be expected to abandon the fields to participate in SIR enumeration,” she wrote.
Raising the human cost of the exercise, she pointed to the reported suicide of an anganwadi worker in Jalpaiguri under alleged SIR-related pressure.
“Several others have lost their lives since this process began,” she wrote, calling the compressed three-month timeline, for a revision that normally takes three years, “inhuman” and “dangerously coercive.”
Banerjee urged the Election Commission to “intervene decisively,” halt the ongoing exercise, stop coercive measures, and reassess the methodology and deadlines.
Continuing on the current path, she warned, would have “irreversible consequences” for officials, citizens, and the electoral process.
“This is a moment that demands responsibility, humanit,y and decisive corrective action,” she wrote, expressing hope that the Commission would act “accordingly and without delay.”
The Election Commission of India’s (ECI) Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which has faced significant criticism following its implementation in Bihar and expansion to 12 states and Union Territories (UTs). This process involves a comprehensive house-to-house verification of voter lists to remove duplicates, deceased entries, shifted voters, and ineligible names, while adding eligible new voters.
Critics, particularly from opposition parties, have alleged it is hasty, opaque, and targeted at disenfranchising minorities (especially Muslims) rather than being a systematic cleanup.
The Bihar phase sparked a political firestorm, with opposition parties accusing the ECI of bias toward the BJP.
These claims have intensified with Phase 2, especially in opposition-ruled states like West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala, facing the 2026 polls.
