Hundreds of river erosion victims across four Assembly constituencies in Malda district are struggling after their names were allegedly removed from the electoral rolls, stripping them of their voting rights.
The plight of Malda’s erosion victims highlights a critical gap between environmental displacement and electoral inclusion, thus raising serious concerns about access to democratic rights for some of the state’s most vulnerable populations.
The affected constituencies — Ratua, Manikchak, Mothabari, and Baishnabnagar — have witnessed extensive land erosion caused by the Ganga, Fulhar and Pagla rivers over the past three decades.
Since 1998, when erosion intensified into a recurring disaster, more than 10 lakh residents have lost their homes and agricultural land.
Land being eroded by the Ganga at a village in the Manikchak Assembly constituency of Malda
For many victims, displacement happened suddenly, leaving them with little time to safeguard essential documents such as land records, identity cards and voter ID cards. This has had long-term consequences on their electoral inclusion.
Torikul Islam, an erosion victim from Mothabari, said many residents who fled overnight from now-extinct villages like KB Jhaubona could not participate in the 2002 electoral roll revision, which later became the basis for voter verification for the special intensive revision (SIR) of 2026.
“Now, our names have been deleted again. We have lost not just our homes, but also our right to vote,” he said.
Many others like Ainul Haque, 70, and Mostafa Sheikh, 55, share similar concerns, as they now face uncertainty regarding their enfranchisement.
Representatives of the Ganga Bhangan Pratirodh Action Committee (GBPAC), which has been working for the rights of erosion victims, said the scale of deletion is alarming.
Khidir Box, a leader of the committee, claimed that in the Kachalitola booth, 412 out of 629 voters under adjudication were removed, while 433 out of 708 names were deleted from the Jahirtola booth — most of them being erosion victims. Both these booths are in the Mothabari Assembly constituency.
The crisis has also affected elderly residents.
Nur Banu, 75, who was displaced from Manikchak in 1996 due to erosion, said her name has been removed despite possessing a valid voter ID issued that year.
“Even my son, who works in a government office, has had his name deleted. This is a new hardship for us,” she said.
Residents like Hussain Ali and Anwara Bibi from Ratua, who had voted as recently as 2024, were shocked to find their names missing from the rolls this time.
The GBPAC representatives estimate that at least 50,000 erosion victims across these constituencies are now struggling to reclaim their voting rights.
Out of nearly 8.85 lakh voters in these four Assembly seats, around 2.5 lakh are directly or indirectly affected by river erosion.
Mosarekul Anwar, a social activist from Baishnabnagar, said the issue has compounded the suffering of already vulnerable communities.
“They lost their homes, livelihoods and land to erosion. Now, after the electoral revision, they are losing their voice as citizens. This is a crisis upon a crisis,” he said.
Frustration is also growing among displaced families living in temporary settlements.
Around 300 families residing along the Kesharpur embankment in the Bhutni islet have expressed disappointment with political parties.
“There are 588 voters in our booth, yet no party has come to campaign here. It feels like they are avoiding us because we would question them about erosion,” said Mangali Mahato.
A similar sentiment was echoed in the Narayanpur islet, where nearly 750 erosion-affected families live.
“Earlier, political workers would come with flags and campaign materials. This time, no one has come. There is no sign of election enthusiasm here,” said 60-year-old Hareram Mandal. “Maybe they don’t want to face our questions. But we will vote,” he added.