Photo: Maktoob
In a development that has raised concerns about possible disenfranchisement ahead of the Assembly elections, voter rolls in West Bengal were frozen at midnight on Thursday, even as the proposed tribunal system to hear appeals from those removed from the rolls had not been set up.
More than 27 lakh voters whose names were deleted after adjudication were left with little to no immediate recourse. Only two individuals are reported to have had their names restored so far, both following intervention by the Supreme Court of India.
Although over 2 lakh appeals were said to have been filed online, the lack of operational tribunals meant that many voters remained in uncertainty, Maktoob Media reported.
These tribunals, intended to address grievances arising from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, have yet to begin functioning.
With no clear communication from the office of Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agrawal, anxious voters were seen gathering outside Block Development Officer and District Magistrate offices across the state, seeking clarity. Many expressed doubts about whether their appeals would be processed in time, if at all.
One voter indicated that despite filing an online appeal and visiting the BDO office, officials told her the matter was no longer within their control.
The scale of deletions has been significant, with the electorate reportedly shrinking from 7.66 crore to about 6.77 crore, a drop of nearly 89 lakh voters. Of these, around 58 lakh names were removed initially, while over 60 lakh cases were sent for adjudication.
However, with the adjudication process effectively stalled, only two deleted voters, both political candidates, including Congress nominee Motab Shaikh and former MLA Mottakin Alam, have been reinstated, highlighting the difficulty ordinary citizens face in accessing relief.
Earlier in the week, the Supreme Court of India declined a request from the state government to allow certain deleted voters to cast their ballots or to delay the freezing of electoral rolls. The court also chose not to set a strict timeline for tribunals to address the pending cases.
The tribunals were planned to be established at the Syama Prasad Mookerjee National Institute of Water and Sanitation, but officials indicated that they were not yet operational and could take a few more days to become functional.
In an apparent effort to manage the situation, senior IAS officer Vibhu Goel was appointed as Additional Chief Electoral Officer on April 7 to coordinate between the Election Commission, the Calcutta High Court, and the tribunals.
The Election Commission had already finalised the supplementary voter list earlier in the week, with the second phase of polling scheduled for April 29, while the first phase list had been frozen on April 6.
For many voters, however, the lack of clarity and delays in the appeals process have left participation in the electoral process uncertain, as crowds continue to gather outside government offices with their concerns unresolved.