West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of deleting millions of names from the state’s electoral roll using Artificial Intelligence, triggering a sharp political row ahead of elections. Addressing a public meeting at Barjora in Bankura district, Banerjee claimed that around 54 lakh voters have already been removed and alleged that the BJP has set a target of deleting 1.5 crore names from Bengal’s voters’ list.
Warning people against blindly trusting social media content, the Chief Minister said that AI was being misused to manipulate voter data. She alleged that duplicate names were deliberately being created to deprive genuine voters of their franchise. “When you go to the polling booth, you may find that you cannot vote because someone with the same name has already voted,” she cautioned, urging citizens to remain alert.
Banerjee strongly criticised the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, calling it a threat to voters’ rights. She alleged that Booth Level Agents (BLAs) were being barred from SIR hearing centres and claimed that instructions were being issued informally through WhatsApp. Demanding transparency, she challenged the Election Commission to issue written orders if such restrictions were official, adding that her party would approach both the people’s court and the court of law for justice.
The Chief Minister also referred to an alleged incident from Purulia, where an elderly person reportedly died by suicide after being summoned for an SIR hearing. Calling the process humiliating, she questioned the morality of summoning very old citizens, including a 95-year-old woman, and asking them to prove their citizenship. “Have some shame and stop harassing the people of Bengal in the name of SIR,” she said.
Banerjee further demanded the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the issue, intensifying the political confrontation between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP over electoral roll revisions in the state.
