BJP monitors TMC’s Bhowanipore voter list drive, alleges Opposition voter suppression

The political temperature is rising in West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s assembly constituency, Bhowanipore. On one hand, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has launched a special campaign to remove fake voters from the electoral roll. On the other hand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has started its own monitoring to keep an eye on this campaign. The BJP has alleged that TMC is using this initiative as a pretext to remove opposition voters from the list.

Last Thursday, during a rally at Netaji Indoor Stadium, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of adding fake names to the voter list in the state. Immediately after, Mamata instructed party leaders to inspect the voter list at the booth level in all assembly constituencies. As part of this, on Saturday, Minister and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim began a door-to-door verification of the voter list in Bhowanipore.

Following TMC’s initiative in Bhowanipore, the South Kolkata district BJP also launched a monitoring campaign. The BJP claims that through this drive, TMC may attempt to remove the names of opposition party supporters from the list. BJP has instructed its workers to report immediately if any voter’s name is removed or if anyone faces any difficulties. The party has also issued a contact number for complaints.

South Kolkata District BJP General Secretary Indrajit Khatic stated, "We have started this monitoring campaign from Bhowanipore. Not just Bhowanipore, but also in the Rasbehari, Kasba, Ballygunge, Behala East, and Behala West assembly constituencies under the South Kolkata Lok Sabha area, this initiative is being implemented. However, our special focus remains on Bhowanipore."

Indrajit Khatic further mentioned that in the last Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had led in five out of the eight wards in Bhowanipore, while TMC was ahead in only three. This has caused concern for TMC. As a result, Firhad Hakim is now going door-to-door, allegedly pressuring opposition voters under the guise of voter list verification.

Notably, in the Lok Sabha elections, BJP had an edge in Wards 63, 70, 71, 72, and 74 of Bhowanipore, while TMC led in Wards 73, 77, and 82. Looking at the entire Kolkata Municipal Corporation area, BJP had the lead in around 42 of the total 144 wards.

The Trinamool Congress is also fully active regarding its campaign. The voter list core committee, formed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, will meet on March 6 at the TMC Bhawan under the leadership of state president Subrata Bakshi. This meeting will determine the next strategy for the campaign to remove fake voters.