Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, on Saturday accused the state administration of manipulating voter rolls during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral lists, claiming that senior officials were directly intervening to retain ineligible names.
Speaking to reporters in Siliguri, Adhikari alleged that the Election Commission’s (EC) dependence on the state machinery had left the process vulnerable. “The EC depends on the state machinery, which is indulged in fraud,” he said, asserting that attempts were being made to include “names of Bangladeshi infiltrators” in the rolls.
Adhikari claimed that senior officials were calling district-level authorities, including district election officers, electoral registration officers and assistant electoral registration officers, to ensure that questionable entries remained. “These allegedly included dead voters, duplicate voters, fake voters and Bangladeshi infiltrators,” he added.
The BJP leader, however, welcomed the EC’s move to tighten oversight. On Friday, the Commission appointed observers across Bengal, including retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta as Special Roll Observer for the SIR. Twelve IAS officers have also been designated as Electoral Roll Observers to assist district officials in verifying entries and implementing corrective measures.
Adhikari said the BJP had posted the “highest number” of booth-level agents during the revision exercise, reflecting the party’s focus on voter-list scrutiny in the run-up to the 2026 Assembly elections.
Also read: WB speeds ahead in SIR process with over 6 cr forms digitise
Earlier in the day, Adhikari visited the Siliguri home of Indian cricketer Richa Ghosh and felicitated her for her performance at the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025. He described the wicketkeeper-batter, who also features in the U-19 World Cup and Women’s Premier League honour rolls, as a “true daughter of West Bengal”.
Tension later surfaced in Cooch Behar district, where police objected to a podium erected on a highway at Changrabandha for a rally Adhikari was scheduled to address. Police said the structure violated Calcutta High Court guidelines regarding traffic flow and the size of political gatherings.
The BJP alleged partisan interference, leading to heated exchanges at the site. A two-kilometre march, part of the party’s state-wide ‘Parivartan Yatra’, eventually took place. Adhikari told reporters that the meeting was conducted “adhering to all the guidelines and directives of the Calcutta High Court”, ensuring that the highway remained unobstructed.
Stepping up his attack on the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, Adhikari predicted a change of guard in the state. “Wait for four-five months. Mamata Banerjee is going to be an ex-CM. This undemocratic, intimidating, communal Trinamool Congress regime will be thrown out peacefully by people’s mandate,” he said. He alleged that “Hindus are uniting against the TMC”, accusing the ruling party of “appeasing ‘Jihadi’ forces in border areas”.
A senior police officer maintained that the podium had obstructed traffic and violated the court’s stipulations, while the BJP continued to charge the law enforcers with acting at the behest of the government.
In Kolkata’s northern suburbs, Union minister and former BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar led another segment of the ‘Parivartan Yatra’, from Nimta to Birati Mahajati Nagar. Thousands joined the rally as Majumdar accused the TMC government of “misgovernance” and “appeasement”.
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