West Bengal opposition parties question ECI over millions of voter list appeals

Opposition parties in West Bengal are questioning the Election Commission of India over 16.10 lakh appeals filed against the inclusion of voters after a major voter list revision.

Reactions and Claims

Leaders from the All India Trinamool Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) have raised concerns about who gave permission to file these appeals. CPI(M) State secretary Mohammad Salim called the situation a ghostly affair where officials are dodging responsibility. He noted that former special observer Subrata Gupta stated he had no information about the Chief Electoral Officer's office filing these lakhs of appeals to remove voters whose names judicial officers had already cleared. The Trinamool Congress also criticized the ECI on social media, accusing the poll body of deleting 91 lakh electors during the Special Intensive Revision held from October 2025 to February 2026.

ECI Stance

In an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court on October 26, the ECI stated that the appeals were not brought to its notice earlier. The poll body received a communication on October 22 from the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer's office stating that its officials filed the appeals as authorities under the Representation of the People Act, 1950. The ECI added that these officers had the authority to act according to Supreme Court orders.

Context

The Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls is an administrative process conducted to clean up voter lists by removing duplicate, dead, or ineligible voters. In many parts of India, large-scale revisions often face intense political scrutiny because changes directly impact election outcomes and voter turnout. Tribunals and judicial officers are typically involved to review disputes and ensure eligible citizens are not unfairly left out of the democratic process.