Bengal SIR review: EC's special observer faces women's protest in South 24 Parganas

Kolkata, Dec 11 Election Commission's special observer C. Murugan on Thursday faced protests while overseeing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list in South 24 Parganas district. Women Trinamool Congress supporters led the protest in front of the special observer in the Falta area of the district.

They demanded that the Central government first provide houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme.

Only then, they said, would they allow the SIR process to proceed. Some even claimed they would not allow the SIR exercise to take place before these demands were met.

A delegation from the Election Commission, led by Murugan, visited Falta on Thursday to monitor the SIR process.

They inspected whether the booth-level officers (BLOs) were working properly and checked the number of deceased voters in each booth. Murugan also visited the homes of elderly voters to verify whether they were alive or deceased.

It was during this time that a group of Trinamool supporters surrounded the commission's delegation and staged a protest. Most of the protesters were women. They chanted slogans against the SIR and the BJP.

Slogans were also raised demanding houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and wages under the 100-day work scheme.

Sources claimed that C. Murugan was annoyed by this type of protest.

He will submit a report to the Election Commission on this matter. He stated that the protest was staged deliberately because the SIR process has no connection with development or government projects. However, Murugan said he will continue his work despite the obstacles.

The state's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Manoj Kumar Agarwal, did not officially comment on the matter. Sources said the entire matter would be investigated and appropriate action would be taken.

The SIR process began on November 4 in 12 states and Union Territories across the country, including West Bengal.

In the eastern state of West Bengal, the process is almost complete.

BLOs (Booth Level Officers) are collecting enumeration forms and uploading them to the commission's portal. Based on this, the commission will publish the draft voter list on December 16.

The final voter list will be published on February 14 next year.

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