‘Attempt to clamp super emergency in West Bengal’: Mamata targets ECI, BJP over SIR

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of attempting to impose a “super emergency” in the state and held the Election Commission of India (ECI) responsible for the deaths of at least 14 citizens during the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, ordered on October 27.

“This is an attempt to clamp a super emergency. Fourteen citizens have died out of fear. Some of them have died by suicide. But not a single condolence message has come from the ECI. The assembly elections will be declared in February. The SIR exercise cannot be completed in such a short time. You are doing this only to stop our government from working for three months,” Banerjee said in Siliguri during an official tour of north Bengal.

While announcing compensation for those affected by last month’s floods and landslides, Banerjee alleged that the EC was taking orders from the BJP-led Centre. “When TN Seshan was the Chief Election Commissioner (1990–96), he said the ECI is for the people and not for the government. But now I see just the opposite. You cannot satisfy only your boss. You have to first satisfy voters. You cannot bulldoze democracy. Can you hear me, Sir? Then answer me,” she said, without naming Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

“You will only say ‘yes sir’ to your boss but ultimately it will become ‘no sir.’ You could do SIR in Bihar because there was nobody to stop you. But here we will catch you at every step. Who are you to say who is an Indian and who is a voter? Who are you to question citizenship?” Banerjee added, intensifying the confrontation between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP, which she called “a two-headed cobra”.

Her comments came ahead of the Supreme Court’s scheduled hearing on Tuesday of multiple petitions, including one filed by the Congress, challenging the SIR process. “There should be a stay on the SIR. It is being imposed on people just like demonetisation. Millions have not yet received the enumeration forms. These have been sent to BJP offices to malign our people. The ECI cannot be run by BJP. You can put me in jail for saying this. You can cut my throat as well but you cannot cut the voting right of even a single citizen,” Banerjee said.

Without naming Union home minister Amit Shah, she added, “You said there were ‘ghuspetiye’ (infiltrators) in Bihar where your government is in power. As home minister, you should resign since internal security and the Border Security Force are your responsibility. You are creating a fake narrative that Rohingyas are here in New Town. Where are they?”

“Today, you are in the ‘kursi’ (chair). Tomorrow you may not be there,” Banerjee remarked.

The chief minister also accused the Centre of attempting to financially cripple West Bengal, claiming that no central assistance had been provided after recent floods and landslides in Darjeeling and adjoining districts. She said there had been no financial aid from Delhi after any natural disaster since 2021.

Criticising the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, Banerjee said the state’s share was being diverted to BJP-ruled states. “The GST should be scrapped. Our state was among the first to support it because Amit Mitra (former state finance minister) convinced us. We made a big blunder. Our money is being diverted to BJP-ruled states for wasteful expenditure. The Centre has no major expenses to bear except for defence,” she said.

Banerjee also referred to the death of Namita Hansda, a booth-level officer (BLO) engaged in the SIR exercise in East Burdwan district, who died on Sunday. Her husband alleged she suffered a cerebral attack after failing to distribute all enumeration forms. “How can BLOs, who are schoolteachers, visit the homes of all voters after daily duty? They cannot take such pressure. This is very unfortunate,” Banerjee said.

While Banerjee was addressing the media, the Calcutta high court dismissed a public interest litigation filed last week seeking judicial intervention in the SIR. In another incident, a 23-year-old woman from Hooghly died after consuming pesticide and allegedly poisoning her minor child out of fear of being branded an alien.

The first such case occurred on October 28 in North 24 Parganas, when a 57-year-old man who had migrated from Bangladesh decades ago died by suicide, leaving a note blaming the National Register of Citizens. Most of the deceased were Hindus.

The BJP dismissed Banerjee’s allegations. Former Bengal BJP president Rahul Sinha said, “She is trying to weave a political narrative. The SIR is necessary in Bengal and it will be carried out. She is the one creating panic among people to serve her interest.”