One woman allegedly sought the deletion of 40 voters’ names in a pocket of Tollygunge, part of the Rashbehari Assembly seat, claiming they were not Indian citizens.
Thirty-nine of them are Muslims. The preliminary “final” voter list, published on February 28, has all 40 names. A couple of them have been marked “under adjudication”.
Some of these voters lodged a formal complaint at Charu Market police station against the woman — who has submitted Form 7 applications against them — alleging a larger conspiracy to disenfranchise minority voters.
The woman pleaded ignorance about the Form 7 applications and claimed she had been framed.
Form 7 allows any voter from a particular Assembly constituency to apply to the Election Commission seeking the deletion of a name from the rolls for the same constituency, or objecting to its inclusion.
Trinamool leaders, including chief minister Mamata Banerjee, have said that Form 7s have been submitted mainly against Muslims. They have alleged a “sinister pattern” that suggests that minorities are being targeted.
Sheikh Golam Mehboob, 67, who retired as “general manager, aviation” from a leading oil and gas PSU, has had a Form 7 application filed against him. So have his wife and daughter.
“I was surprised, very surprised. The whole thing reeks of an intentional bid to harass a section of voters,” said Mehboob, one of the signatories to the police complaint.
His wife Flora Mehboob, 63, is the daughter of the late former Congress MLA from Deganga, Md Shaukat Ali.
The booth-level officer (BLO) visited the Mehboob family home in the Charu Market area after the Form 7 applications were filed. Mehboob, his wife and their daughter furnished their passports, and the BLO uploaded copies.
Faruque-ul-Islam, a photographer, rights activist and a voter at the same booth, part of Ward 89, also had a Form 7 application filed against him.
“There is a clear pattern. This is not an isolated incident. The complainant is an active BJP worker,” Faruque, who too signed the police complaint, said.
“She has filed a series of similar voter deletion applications in other parts of the same ward, mostly targeting minorities.”
Those whose deletion has been sought are long-time voters, he said.
The woman — this newspaper is withholding her name — denied the allegation.
“Yes, I am a BJP supporter. That seems to be my only fault. I am being framed. I am not aware of the (Form 7) applications. I too have filed a police complaint regarding this,” she said.
Her complaint says she has been framed and that she has received threats from some local people.
Pronomesh Soren, the BLO supervisor for Ward 89, said: “Several Form 7 applications
were filed online by one woman. When we called her for a physical appearance, she refused to come. But the voters the forms had mentioned had valid documents. Their names are on the list published on February 28.”
The police complaint levels multiple charges against the woman, including that of promoting enmity between religious groups.
An officer at Charu Market police station said the complaint was “being investigated”.