West Bengal Gears Up for Special Intensive Revision Amid Political Row, Mamata Banerjee Opposes Move

Kolkata, October 24 (TNA) After the controversy over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists in Bihar, which even reached the Supreme Court, the Election Commission of India (ECI) is now set to conduct a similar exercise in West Bengal. According to sources, the SIR process could begin as early as November 1. The Commission has alerted all District Election Officers (DEOs) to stay prepared, as the process may commence anytime.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has strongly opposed the move, citing that in Bihar, lakhs of names were allegedly removed from the voter list. She warned that her government would resist any such attempt in Bengal, saying, “We won’t allow even a single name to be deleted.”

Sources reveal that the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal has instructed district officials to complete all pending tasks and set up dedicated SIR help desks in their offices. The CEO’s office will now operate 24x7 to monitor the process, and all discussions and reports will be directly submitted to the ECI.

Interestingly, reports indicate that nearly 45% of voters currently listed in Bengal were not present in the 2002 voter list prepared during the last SIR. The ECI has already begun voter mapping exercises ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.