TMC’s Kunal Ghosh Accuses Amit Shah of “Politically Pressuring” EC During Voter List Revision

GG News Bureau
Kolkata, 22nd Nov: With the West Bengal elections inching closer, political tensions escalated on Friday as Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Kunal Ghosh accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of “politically pressuring” the Election Commission (EC) during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Speaking to ANI, Ghosh alleged that the SIR exercise—meant to clean voter lists—is now being weaponised to target genuine voters. He claimed that “real voters and Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are committing suicide due to harassment,” and warned that attempts to manipulate the electoral registry could disrupt democratic participation.

“After the SIR happened in 2001, it took two years. Now elections are coming. Motivated by politics, they are pressuring the Election Commission,” Ghosh said.
“We want that not a single real voter faces trouble, and not a single real voter’s name is removed from the list, while no illegal voter should remain.”

He alleged that the BJP is using the EC “to fulfil its political agenda,” while demanding fair and transparent scrutiny of the electoral rolls.

Meanwhile, Amit Shah took a firm stand in defence of the SIR process. Addressing the Border Security Force’s 61st Raising Day event in Haripur, Bhuj, the Union Home Minister urged citizens to fully cooperate with the independent nationwide revision.

Calling the revision a safeguard for India’s electoral integrity and national security, Shah declared:
“We will single-handedly remove every infiltrator from the country — this is not just our policy, this is our pledge. The SIR is a process to protect the country and our democracy.”

Without naming the parties of the INDIA bloc, Shah accused “certain political parties” of attempting to derail the cleaning of voter lists. He warned that these forces were opposing the electoral sanitisation drive for political interests, adding that the Bihar elections have already shown “where the mandate of the people stands.”

As both sides sharpen their political messaging, the SIR revision—normally a bureaucratic exercise—has quickly become a flashpoint ahead of the polls. With both genuine and illegal voter names under scrutiny, and both parties framing the narrative in ideological terms, the battle over the voter list appears poised to influence the larger battle at the ballot box.

With election season approaching, the EC faces immense pressure from both camps — to ensure fairness while preventing allegations of manipulation. The coming weeks are likely to determine whether the SIR becomes a lesson in transparency or another flashpoint in Bengal’s already heated political climate.