Kolkata: Booth-level officers (BLOs) engaged in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in West Bengal scuffled with police personnel on Monday while attempting to enter the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) here, protesting against alleged excessive work pressure, a senior official said.
Members of the BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee held a procession from College Square in north Kolkata, carrying locks and fetters to symbolically seal the main entrance of the building housing the CEO’s office. The demonstrators tried to breach police barricades in central Kolkata, the official added.
The protesting BLOs raised slogans against the Election Commission of India (ECI), alleging that they were compelled to stage the demonstration because the poll panel did not respond to complaints about the intense and inhuman work pressure during the SIR exercise.
A committee functionary said, "BLOs have been directed to complete tasks within a short period, though the same work usually takes more than two years." The committee also claimed that BLOs were falling ill, and two officers had died by suicide due to stress.
The BLO Adhikar Raksha Committee had earlier announced that para-teachers, college professors, and teachers from several organisations would join the march to press for immediate intervention by the Election Commission.
House-to-house enumeration under the SIR began on November 4 and will continue until December 4, with draft electoral rolls scheduled for publication on December 9. The committee warned that if deadlines are not extended or corrective measures are not taken, it will launch a continuous protest programme.
Meanwhile, another organisation, BLO Oikya Mancha, separately highlighted issues related to the digitisation of enumeration forms and demanded additional support staff. It had submitted a deputation on November 22.
With PTI inputs