For thousands of voters across Bengal, attending hearings for the Election Commission’s special intensive revision (SIR) of the voter list has turned into a test of endurance, livelihood and dignity. Even two days after the second phase of the revision began on Saturday, distress at the ground level showed no signs of easing.
On Monday, voters whose names could not be mapped to the post-2002 electoral rolls queued up at 3,234 hearing centres across the state, many after travelling long distances, forfeiting wages, or overcoming severe physical constraints.
Alamgir Hossain and Subhasish Chaudhuri of The Telegraph documented several instances that underscore the mounting human cost of the exercise.
Paralysed patient
On Monday, 75-year-old Rabindranath Roy, a bedridden paralytic patient from Ichhapur-Babupara village in Gaighata, North 24-Parganas, was brought to the SIR hearing on a stretcher. Roy had suffered a cerebral attack barely two weeks ago, leaving him completely paralysed and unable to walk. A voter since 1952, he holds an Indian passport and a citizenship certificate.
However, for reasons unknown to his family, his name did not appear on the 2002 voters’ list, leading to the issuance of a summons. His relatives transported him to the hearing centre at the Gaighata BDO office on a tricycle van, carrying him on a stretcher.
Migrant mason
Manoruddin Sheikh, 50, a migrant labourer from Pipulkhola village in Nadia’s
Karimpur 2 block, was forced to leave his job in Hyderabad to attend a hearing on December 27.
A mason engaged in a time-bound construction project, Manoruddin sought leave from his employer after receiving the summons, but was refused. His father’s name figures in the 2002 voters’ list, yet the BLO marked his father as “not found”, triggering the notice.
He had submitted the enumeration form earlier. Manoruddin is scheduled to return to Hyderabad later this week, but without any assurance of re-employment. “I had to quit the job since leave was not granted. I also had no option, as there was panic of exclusion from the voters’ list. So I had to take the risk to ensure my existence not just as a voter rather as a citizen of this country,” he said.
Student misses exam
On December 26, Sayoni Bhattacharjee, 24, a fourth-semester MA student, was asked to appear for an SIR hearing at the Berhampore BDO office.
However, Saioni was unable to attend as she had a written university examination scheduled on the same day. Her mother, Debjani Bhattacharjee, appeared before the hearing panel on her behalf with all relevant documents.
Election Commission representatives, however, refused to entertain the submission, insisting on Sayoni’s physical presence. She has now been asked to appear personally on December 31.
Orphaned migrant
Sarfraj Sheikh, 25, a migrant labourer from Berhampore working in Bangalore, has been summoned to appear physically for a hearing on December 30. Orphaned at a young age, Sarfraj’s enumeration form was submitted by his grandmother.
As neither of his parents figured in the 2002 voters’ list, the authorities issued a summons. With no alternative, Sarfraj boarded a train at short notice, incurring significant financial loss due to missed daily wages. Unable to secure a reserved ticket, he undertook the journey under strain.
“I guess it will be a matter of about 10 days, including the time spent journey. I will suffer a loss of Rs 10,000. My grandmother called me to appear must for the hearing else I might be tagged a Bangladeshi for no linkage and even pushed back beyond the border,” he said.
Engineer's poser
On Monday, Samaul Sheikh, 31, a civil engineer from Samsherganj in Murshidabad, was travelling from Bangalore to attend a hearing scheduled for Tuesday in his native place.
Samuel’s father’s name appears in the 2002 voters’ list as “Badrul”, without a surname, which reportedly led to confusion over parental linkage and prompted thesummon.
He purchased a tatkal ticket for ₹5,000 to make the journey on time.
“I have been compelled to rush back home, spending ₹5,000 on my ticket to appear in the hearing as asked by the EC. If I did not turn up, I could have been excluded from the voters’ list,” said Samaul. “Such summonses for physical appearance could easily have been avoided by arranging a virtual hearing, while necessary hard copies of evidence could be submitted by my family members at the hearing centre.”
Help for migrants
The West Bengal Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board has launched a helpline number and requested migrant workers to contact their officials if they face any issues during the hearing process ofthe SIR.
“We have already launched a helpline number and a dedicated WhatsApp number for migrant workers, who can reach out to the Board with their SIR-related issues. Migrant workers are already facing harassment, and many are living in fear for their lives. The decision to call them for physical hearings has doubled their suffering,” said Samirul Islam, chairman of the West Bengal Migrant Workers’ Welfare Board.
The Board has been sending text messages informing around 30 lakh migrant workers registered with the state government about the helpline numbers.