4 months ago
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Violent protests continued successful antithetic parts of West Bengal implicit the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, with section residents attacking the Block Development Offices (BDOs) wherever SIR hearings are being held.
The BDO offices astatine Sandeshkhali successful North 24 Parganas territory and astatine Basanti successful South 24 Parganas territory some came nether attack. A mob was seen vandalising bureau furnishings and burning tyres successful beforehand of the BDO bureau astatine Basanti. Large groups of radical besides blocked roads with burning tyres astatine aggregate locations, including astatine Maheshtala and Dholahat successful South 24 Parganas, Polba successful Hooghly, and Barasat successful North 24 Parganas.
The Sandeshkhali Block Development Officer Sayantan Sen said that furnishings and computers were vandalised and officials were threatened by transgression elements successful the mob. However, helium added that portion SIR hearings were disrupted, they aboriginal resumed.
‘SIR should beryllium transparent’
The protests erupted a time aft the Supreme Court observed that the SIR successful West Bengal should beryllium transparent and not origin inconvenience. The tribunal besides directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to show the names of voters whose SIR forms were recovered to person “logical discrepancies” astatine gram panchayat bhavans and artifact offices, wherever documents and objections are to beryllium submitted.
This is not the archetypal clip that BDO offices person been attacked during the ongoing SIR successful the State, with the offices astatine Farakka successful Murshidabad territory and Chakulia successful Uttar Dinjapur territory facing earlier attacks by aggravated mobs.
Claims and objections
On Monday (January 19, 2026), supporters of the BJP and the Trinamool Congress came look to look implicit the submission of Form 7, which is utilized to entity to the inclusion of a voter'’ sanction oregon question the deletion of a sanction from the electoral roll. The TMC supporters were seen mounting ample numbers of Form 7 copies connected fire. The BJP has sought an hold of clip to taxable claims earlier the ECI.
On Tuesday (January 20, 2026), Congress supporters held protests extracurricular the bureau of State’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) successful Kolkata.
‘Unleashing anarchy’
Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari said that the Trinamool Congress is unleashing “anarchy” crossed the State successful the sanction of SIR protests. The BJP person noted that this is not the archetypal clip that an SIR has been held crossed the country; successful fact, it has antecedently been held 8 times, helium said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written 5 letters to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar connected the SIR. In her 5th missive dated January 12, she had pointed retired that galore genuine voters are being wrongly categorised arsenic “logical discrepancies” .
After the archetypal signifier of the SIR, astir 58 lakh names were deleted successful West Bengal, bringing the fig of electors successful the State down to 7.08 crore from 7.66 crore. The ECI has besides appointed 12 elder Central officers arsenic peculiar rotation observers to oversee the SIR successful the State.
