340 muslim voters deleted from single booth in Basirhat, stage protest

A major controversy has erupted in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections after 340 voters were removed from the electoral roll of a single booth in Basirhat North constituency. The deletions, carried out in the first supplementary list, have triggered protests and raised serious questions about transparency in the electoral process. Notably, even the Booth Level Officer (BLO), Md Shafiul Alam, found his name missing from the list, intensifying the outrage among local residents.

The affected voters, all from Booth No. 5 in Boro Gobra village under Basirhat Block II, had earlier been marked as “under adjudication” in the draft electoral roll. However, when the updated list was published, all 340 names were shifted to the deleted category. This move prompted protests by over a hundred residents, who alleged targeted exclusion and gathered both at the BLO’s residence and on nearby streets.

Residents expressed frustration over what they described as a lack of clarity from authorities. According to those affected, the Election Commission requires only one valid document for verification, yet many had submitted multiple documents, including three or four proofs, and still faced deletion. Kajirul Mondal, one of the voters, questioned the basis of the removals, calling the process arbitrary and unjustified.

The controversy has also exposed administrative confusion, with the BLO stating that his attempts to seek redress were unsuccessful. He claimed the Block Development Officer indicated no further action could be taken, while the Electoral Registration Officer remained unreachable. Alam has now decided to approach a tribunal for legal remedy as investigations and political reactions around the issue continue to intensify.