CM Mamata Banerjee
NEW DELHI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday strongly criticised Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, calling him “arrogant” and a “liar” after meeting him at the Election Commission headquarters in Delhi. The sharp remarks came amid the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal, which Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress have alleged is biased, discriminatory and politically motivated.
Speaking to reporters after coming out of the Election Commission office, Banerjee said that she was deeply distressed by the interaction. “We are hurt and distressed. I have been in politics for many years. I have served as a four-time minister and a seven-time MP, but I have never seen such an Election Commissioner who is so arrogant, who is such a liar,” she said.She added that she had reminded the CEC of the dignity of the institution while questioning what she called the selective targeting of West Bengal. “We told them that we respect the institution because no chair is permanent for anyone, but they should not create such a dangerous precedent,” Banerjee said, asking, “Why is only Bengal being targeted? Elections are a festival of democracy.”The TMC leader also alleged that the party boycotted the meeting after being insulted and humiliated by the Election Commission.“Will the Election Commission choose the government before the election… We are watching. You have the power of the BJP. We have the power of the people. So we boycotted the meeting. They have insulted us, humiliated us. I am saying this type of Election Commission is very arrogant. He spoke with a certain attitude. Deliberately, he behaved so badly with us. He behaved badly, and he treated us badly. I said, I am sorry that we came together with you to deliver justice. We didn’t get justice, but you are doing injustice and telling lies. He is a great liar. He is giving a briefing after our queries. All are junk, all are lies. We gave five letters, and he didn’t reply to a single one,” she said.West Bengal CM further questioned the demand for ancestral documents and said such requirements were unrealistic and discriminatory. “If we were to ask senior leaders like Advani ji to provide his parents’ dates of birth, will he be able to do so? This entire process is completely unparliamentary and undemocratic,” she said.Continuing her criticism, the chief minister said she had raised similar concerns during the meeting. “I respect Advani ji and ask him whether he can provide the birth certificates of his father and mother. This is mismatch, a mismap, and unparliamentary,” Banerjee said, alleging serious flaws in the SIR process.Banerjee also claimed that the revision exercise had resulted in widespread errors and human distress.“More than 150 people died, including the BLOs, due to this SIR,” she alleged. “I have brought 100 people with me. There are some of them who have been declared dead in the voters list, but they are alive and present here,” she added.She alleged that large-scale deletions from the electoral rolls were carried out without due process. “You first excluded thousands of people and did not even give them a chance to defend themselves. In the name of AI, decisions are being taken,” she said.Drawing a comparison with criminal justice procedures, she added, “Even in serious crimes like murder, the right to defence is protected. But here, you removed 58 lakh people at one go without even asking who they were or what had happened.”The chief minister arrived in the national capital on Sunday with a 15-member Trinamool Congress delegation, including party MPs Abhishek Banerjee and Kalyan Banerjee, and around 50 families affected by the SIR exercise. Earlier in the day, she also objected to heavy police deployment outside Banga Bhawan, where she was scheduled to hold a press conference, warning that such “threats cannot continue.”Addressing the press, Banerjee alleged that the revision exercise disproportionately impacted marginalised communities. “They claimed there were duplicate entries. In our tradition, when a daughter goes to her in-laws’ house after marriage, her surname often changes. Using this as an excuse, they cancelled her name,” she said. “They have excluded minorities—tribals, SCs, minorities. These are marginalised communities.”She also questioned the timing and geographical focus of the SIR. “If this exercise was really necessary, why was it not done earlier? Why not since 2002?” Banerjee asked. Pointing to neighbouring states, she added, “You have a BJP government in Assam. You didn’t do SIR in Assam, but you did it in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.”Raising concerns over documentation demands, Banerjee said the process ignored ground realities. “If you ask people today to produce birth certificates of their fathers, it would not have been possible earlier. Children were born at home, not in hospitals,” she said, adding, “Ask your Prime Minister if he has institutional delivery certificates of his father and mother.”Challenging government’s authority, Banerjee said, “They say whatever they have done is right. They did not allow any outside cameramen to enter. They are working under the BJP’s direction. Around 2 crore people’s names have been removed from the voters’ list. I can bring lakhs of people here in Delhi, and I can parade them in front of anybody.”The nationwide Special Intensive Revision exercise is currently underway in 12 states and union territories, including West Bengal, with the final electoral rolls scheduled to be published on February 7.
