Trinamool Congress MPs Saturday expressed serious apprehensions about the Election Commission’s initiative to conduct a door-to-door survey, alleging that it is a backdoor ploy to introduce the National Register of Citizens and manipulate Bengal elections in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
TMC MPs demanded that the EC revoke the Special Intensive Revision program, alleging that it is a trick to disenfranchise certain sections of society, particularly the poor and migrant labourers.
“The BJP is using a backdoor approach to introduce NRC in the name of SIR (Special Intensive Revision) in Bihar, TMC MP Sagarika Ghose alleged addressing a joint press conference along with party MPs Derek O’Brien and Saket Gokhale.
“This is a conspiracy. This is BJP’s strategy. This is an attempt to push forward BJP’s agenda. Through SIR, the BJP and the ECI will take away the voting rights of the citizens of India,” Ghose claimed.
Claiming that since BJP’s internal survey has revealed that it will not get more than 46-49 seats in the next Bengal Assembly polls they are adhering to such tactics in their desperation, O’Brien alleged.
“Why is this exercise being done now? We have evidence explaining why it is being done now. It is because the BJP’s latest internal survey for Bengal shows 46-49 seats for them if Assembly polls are held. In their desperation to change or attempt to change this, they are doing this,” O’Brien alleged.
The Election Commission last week announced a Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, aiming to ensure that all eligible citizens are enrolled and ineligible voters are excluded.
Saying that the exercise is crucial for maintaining the integrity and accuracy of the electoral rolls, the poll panel said it will conduct a house-to-house survey through Booth Level Officers to verify the eligibility of citizens.
The ECI claimed that this process will help identify and include eligible voters who may have been missed earlier and will also ensure that all eligible citizens are enrolled as voters. The ECI also asserted that ineligible voters must also be excluded from the electoral rolls.
Earlier on Thursday West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC Chairperson Mamata Banerjee also expressed serious concern about EC’s door-to-door initiative. She had in Kolkata alleged that the EC was trying to “implement NRC through backdoors” as it wants to delete names of valid voters.
She had alleged that the EC was acting on the basis of the BJP’s wishes, challenging the poll body’s authority to seek the documents.
Other Opposition parties have also expressed anxiety over EC’s drive saying that the insistence on proof of residence and parents’ documents may cause unnecessary harassment for voters while the exercise may also result in the deletion of names of genuine voters.
Responding to a question, O’Brien said that the constituents of the Opposition INDIA bloc were on the same page on this issue.