New Delhi: Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Monday dismissed as imaginary all conjectures about a disagreement between the ECI and the West Bengal government over the issue of Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Briefing mediapersons on the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) schedule for conducting SIR in 12 States and Union Territories, CEC Gyanesh Kumar said, “There is no friction over the SIR in West Bengal.”
“All constitutional institutions conduct their business as per the Constitution. By preparing to conduct the SIR, the Election Commission is performing its constitutional duty and, in the same manner, every state government will also perform its duty,” he said.
His response followed a question about possible resistance to the SIR exercise by the West Bengal government, as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has purportedly voiced her opposition to a revision of the electoral rolls.
Gyanesh Kumar indicated that there was no possibility of state governments and their departments not joining the SIR efforts.
He said that, like all constitutional institutions, state governments are also duty-bound to provide the wherewithal, including personnel and security cover, for conducting the SIR and holding elections.
He said, carrying forward the lessons learnt by the ECI in Bihar SIR, some additional instructions would also be issued for the exercise in these 12 states and UTs.
The ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal is reported to be against the very idea of conducting the exercise and has been constantly claiming that SIR is an indirect ploy of the Union government and the BJP to slap NRC in the state.
Sources in the Trinamool Congress said that a mega anti-SIR rally in Kolkata is likely to be conducted in the first week of November. The main speakers during the event will be West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and party general secretary and Lok Sabha member Abhishek Banerjee.
Earlier this month, CM Banerjee said that she would not tolerate the deletion of the names of voters from a particular community following the voter list revision.
She also accused the ECI of unnecessarily hurrying to begin and complete the SIR process in West Bengal at a time when, on one hand, the festive season in West Bengal is and, on the other hand, several people in rain and landslide-hit regions in North Bengal are struggling to come out of the crisis as a result of the natural calamity.
“I will not tolerate it if the names of people from any particular community in the state are deleted from the voters’ list because of this unnecessary hurry. I am asking them (ECI) not to play with fire. A crisis because of a natural calamity is still prevailing in West Bengal. Houses of several people have been washed away because of the flood. In such a situation, from where will they furnish the necessary documents for the SIR? Some are on vacation because of the ongoing festive season. How will they furnish the documents?” the Chief Minister asked while addressing media persons on October 9.
(IANS)
