Big upheaval before Bengal elections… Out of 12.9 lakh names cut in SIR, 1468 voters return to the list.

Just before the second phase of voting in West Bengal, the election atmosphere has become even more interesting. A large number of voters whose names were removed from the voter list and who had appealed against it, have now got relief. After the tribunal’s decision, thousands of voters have been included in the list again, which may also affect the electoral equations.

According to the data released by the Election Commission, the tribunal reviewed a total of 1474 applications before the second phase of voting. Of these, names of 1468 people have been added to the voter list, while 6 applications were rejected. This decision has brought great relief to those whose names were removed during the Special Intensive Review (SIR) process and who had appealed under the judicial process.

Voting will be held on 142 seats

In the second phase, voting is to be held on a total of 142 assembly seats in 7 districts of the state. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Bhawanipur seat is also included in these seats, on which everyone’s eyes are fixed. This change in the voter list before voting is also considered politically important.

Controversy already regarding SIR process

The process of SIR i.e. Special Intensive Review in West Bengal has been a subject of discussion and controversy since its inception. There was a lot of debate and allegations and counter-allegations among political parties regarding this issue. In the first phase of voting, which was held on April 23, the tribunal had also given relief to some voters. At that time, 657 applications were examined, in which names of 139 people were added back, while some applications were rejected.

More number of voters have been included in the second phase as compared to the first phase. While only 139 names were added in the first phase, this time 1468 people have got the right to vote again. The special thing this time was that no application was declared ‘wrong’, whereas in the first phase a large number of applications were found wrong.

Controversy increased due to removal of names of lakhs of voters

During the SIR process, names of about 90 lakh voters were removed from the list across the state, which is about 12 percent of the total voters. Of these, about 60 lakh people were categorized as ‘absent’ or ‘dead’, while about 27 lakh cases were presented before the tribunal. During the investigation it also came to light that among those whose status could not be clarified, a large number belonged to the Muslim community. Apart from this, Dalit Hindus, especially people of Matua community, were also affected in some areas.

New list made after the instructions of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court also intervened in this entire matter. On April 13, the court, using its special powers, directed the Election Commission to add the names of voters whose appeals have been approved by the tribunal to the supplementary voter list. The court also clarified that those whose appeal has been decided before April 21 and April 27, can take part in the first and second phase of voting respectively.

More than 34 lakh appeals have been registered regarding this process in the state. Many of these people objected to the removal of their names, while some raised questions on the addition of new names. The Supreme Court also made it clear that merely because the appeal is pending, no one gets the right to vote. For this, approval from the tribunal is necessary.