West Bengal next after Bihar? Fresh EC directives trigger speculation of SIR-like exercise in Mamata bastion

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has been critical of the SIR exercise being undertaken in Bihar. (File: PTI)

Fresh directives issued by the Election Commission to the Chief Secretary and District Election Officers (DEOs) in West Bengal, asking them to step up preparations for an impending revision of electoral rolls, has set off speculation of an impending Bihar-like exercise in the state ruled by the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress.

According to a report in The Indian Express, two separate letters were sent by Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Manoj Agarwal addressed to Chief Secretary Manoj Pant and all the state DEOs, on August 26 and August 27, respectively, in this regard.

While the letter to DEOs asked them to put all preparations in place for the exercise, the letter to the Chief Secretary said the government should fill up all vacant posts of Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) and Assistant EROs (AEROs) immediately "so that that the EC could carry out the electoral roll revision when it is announced", the report said, citing sources.

The letters were sent ahead of the meeting Bengal CEO Agarwal is scheduled to convene with all political parties regarding the development on August 29. However, there is no clarity yet on whether the impending exercise will be a summary revision of electoral rolls or a more intensive exercise on the lines of Bihar.

"We don't know whether it would be called SIR (Special Intensive Revision) or not, but like in earlier polls the roll revision will be done. So we are trying to complete our preparations in August so that, if required, we can start the revision process from September first week itself," the IE report quoted an EC official as saying.

On Wednesday, Chief Secretary Pant held a virtual meeting with all District Magistrates, asking them to immediately fill all vacant posts of the EROs and AEROs with designated officers so that they could discharge their election duties properly.

As per sources, the Chief Secretary has directed that all vacant posts of EROs and AEROs be filled by Friday. "For both these posts senior officers should be deputed. Till date it seems that the state administration is co-operating with the EC for holding electoral roll revision," a senior state government official was quoted as saying.

The directives by the EC come in the midst of a politically charged campaign by Opposition parties, including the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, against the Bihar SIR.

Banerjee has accused the EC of acting in collusion with the BJP with an intent to manipulate elections. She has also warned people of Bengal against filling up any form by the EC related to the SIR without “knowing the details”.

The letters by the Bengal CEO also come following a standoff between the ruling government in the state and the Election Commission over the latter's order to suspend and book four officials, including two EROs and two AEROs, and a casual data operator for alleged fraudulent registration of 127 voters using forged documents in the Baruipur Purba and Moyna Assembly constituencies.

After refusing to comply with the EC directives, the state government relented on August 21, the poll panel's deadline, by suspending the errant officials but did not file any case against them.

The CEO's letter to the DEOs also made a veiled reference to the issue and advised that assistance for IT related work only be solicited from system managers, assistant system managers and data entry operators who are permanent government employees, drawing salary from the Home & HA Department or permanent government employees of the level of Group C and above.