The wounds inflicted by the contentious electoral revision continue to deepen.
The second post-SIR supplementary list for poll-bound Bengal was published on Friday night. Sources said it contained some 12 lakh names, of which 40% were removed from the rolls.
Metro shares accounts of some. The interactions led to an outpouring of anger and a sense of betrayal.
Abhijit Mitra, 66
Mitra is a voter in Chowringee. He was under adjudication, along with his two sons, Aranya, 34 and Roddur, 29. The February 27 list showed that his name was included in the rolls, but his sons’ names had been deleted. Aranya is an AI engineer in Plymouth, UK, and Roddur is a research scholar in Bengaluru.
Three generations in our family — my father, me and my sons — are former students of St James School. My sons were born and raised in our family home on Rajani Gupta Row in Baithakkhana.
My elder son, Aranya, completed his engineering at BITS Pilani and then earned his master’s in AI from the University of Plymouth in the UK. He now lives in the UK, earning a living as an AI engineer.
My younger son completed his master’s in international relations from Jadavpur University and is now a research scholar in Bengaluru.
We are enraged and deeply hurt at the same time. All three of us were summoned to a hearing on January 31. I appeared in person, on behalf of all three.
The notice sent to me stated that the age gap between my father and me was less than 15 years. I was angry. My father was 42 when I was born in 1961. I had the 2002 electoral rolls, which showed his age, and multiple other documents that proved it.
For both my sons, I submitted their passports, Aadhaar cards, birth certificates and Class X admit cards.
This entire exercise has been faulty since Day One. At the hearing, I gave a piece of my mind to the officials. They had no answer and only attributed the mistakes to AI.
My sons are deeply angry and anguished at the same time.
I will appeal to the tribunal and possibly also move court.
Mohammad Shamim Akhtar, 50
Akhtar, the head of the department of Islamic theology at Aliah University, is a voter from Entally. Both he and his son have been removed from the rolls.
In 2002, I was a resident of Bihar, and my name, along with my parents’ names, was included in Bihar’s electoral rolls. In 2012, I was appointed as a professor at Aliah University, and since 2014, I have been a registered voter in Bengal, in Entally.
When the SIR process began, I filled in all the necessary details for myself and my son.
Both my son and I were called for a hearing because of a “logical discrepancy” involving spelling mismatches.
I submitted my passport, PhD certificate and the 2002 Bihar rolls. My son gave his Aadhaar card, Class X pass certificate, marksheet, and birth certificate. I fail to understand what more valid proof I can provide to establish my identity as a voter.
We are a family of three. And now, two of us have been deleted.
My son, who is 21, is an MBBS student.
When I approached the BLO to understand what steps we should take next, I received no clear answers. A tribunal is supposed to decide my case.
The adjudication process itself was questionable. If my case is being adjudicated, the law of natural justice dictates that my lawyer or I should be able to present my case.
Here, the adjudication was conducted arbitrarily. I never got the chance to present my case. Even if, somehow, my name gets reinstated, the damage is done. In the eyes of society, I have now become a doubtful person.
Abdul Majid Khan, 37
Khan, a voter in Chowringee, recently worked in the customer support team of an e-commerce company.
I have been made to feel like a refugee in my country. My right as a voter has been taken away, and tomorrow, there could be more restrictions on us.
I have voted in five or six elections at least and now they are questioning my identity as a voter.
Ever since my name was put under adjudication, I have been telling my wife that I doubt whether I will be able to vote this time. When I checked the second supplementary list, I found myself on the deleted list. This is a mockery of the election process.
I did not have to physically appear in the hearing, but the BLO asked me to submit my school pass certificate and Aadhaar card to her. I submitted my ICSE and ISC pass certificates.
I will appeal against the decision. Some people are also suggesting that I apply again as a new voter.
I’m worried about my mother. She is also under adjudication, but her name was not there in either of the two supplementary lists published so far.
The list of cleared voters cannot be seen even now.
Her plight is worse than mine. I know my name has been deleted. I know what I have to do next. She does not even know that.
Md Arsalan Kamal, 36
A voter in Ballygunge, Kamal is a sales executive with a private company
My parents and my two sisters feature on the electoral rolls, but my name has been deleted.
While filling out the enumeration form, I used my father’s name for mapping. Both my parents were in the 2002 electoral rolls. I have an Indian passport, and I have even travelled abroad with it.
I submitted my passport
and my birth certificate when my name came up for a
hearing.
I feel very upset with what has been done to me. After having voted in so many
elections, my name has been deleted. I find this hard to
believe.
Additional reporting by Samarpita Banerjee