Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday urged the chief election commissioner (CEC) to recognise the employment records of the tea gardens and cinchona plantations of north Bengal as the proof of identity and residence of workers for the special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral roll.

The leader of the Opposition in the Bengal Assembly made the appeal in a letter sent to the CEC, Gyanesh Kumar.

The request is seen as an attempt by the BJP to reach out to the tea garden workers, most of whom are perturbed with the SIR, as well as to counter the Trinamool Congress, which has been playing the development card in the tea belt to wrest the Assembly seats from the BJP.

“Raju Bista, our Darjeeling MP, had first flagged the issue and written to the chief electoral officer of the state in November with a similar request. As no initiative has been taken so far to consider the employment records, I sent the letter to the CEC today and hope the Election Commission will take necessary steps,” Adhikari said while addressing a news conference at the BJP office in Calcutta.

He pointed out that the workers of tea estates and cinchona plantations, as well as forest dwellers, had been living there for generations.

“But they lack land records and most of the other documents which have been mentioned by the EC as valid proofs which voters can produce when called for a hearing during the SIR process. That is why we have sought the inclusion of employment records as yet another valid document for these people,” the LoP added.

Adhikari also pointed out that the employment records, dating back before 2002, served as reliable proof for the labour department and the welfare issues of workers. “The forest dwellers are also suffering as in Bengal, the Forest Rights Act, 2006, has not been properly implemented,” he said.

“The chief minister has sent letters to the CEC seeking a halt in the SIR process, but has not done anything to address the distress and hardships of these people. She has not sought the intervention of the EC so that the names of these voters are included in the final electoral roll,” he said.

Ritabrata Banerjee, the state INTTUC president, said that Adhikari’s letter was hogwash.

“They should answer why the Centre is not ready to constitute a joint river commission with Bhutan, which can help in mitigating the distress that the tea population faces during the monsoon,” said Banerjee.

“The BJP is fast losing its ground in the tea belt. Thus, the leaders are exploring options as to how they can retain it,” he added.