BJP today urged the Election Commission (ECI) to review and verify the list of documents related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voter list in West Bengal. A BJP delegation, led by senior party leader Amit Malviya, placed this request after meeting with ECI officials today in New Delhi.
Addressing the media, Mr Malviya claimed that many documents registered in the state for SIR are illegally obtained and completely illegitimate. He also requested the Commission to look into the alleged cases of Booth Level Officers being threatened and intimidated in the state.
The West Bengal BJP wrote to the Election Commission on Monday, claiming that the Mamata government has issued “forged” documents to illegal infiltrators in the state and urged the poll body not to accept “backdated and duplicate” birth certificates for Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls.
The BJP alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government has issued “backdated and forged” documents to illegal infiltrators under the ‘Duare Sarkar’ initiative.
In the letter to the ECI, the party wrote, “The State has witnessed large-scale issuance of backdated and forged documents, particularly through government schemes such as Duare Sarkar, aimed ostensibly at citizen welfare but effectively utilised to provide documentation to illegal infiltrators from across the border.
Numerous field reports indicate that since 2020, there has been an exponential increase in the number of certificates issued under these drives.”
Claiming “backdated and duplicate” birth certificates, the BJP recommended that the ECI not accept certificates issued after June 25, 2025.
The party wrote, “Numerous cases of backdated certificates being issued in connivance with local officials and political cadres have been detected. Often, individuals obtain ‘duplicate’ certificates through fabricated general diary entries in police stations, falsely reporting loss or damage of the original document.”
“Birth certificates issued after June 24, 2025, should not be accepted for SIR purposes.
If absolutely necessary, such certificates should be verified on a case-by-case basis by the Booth Level Officers (BLOs) before acceptance,” the BJP recommended.
For Permanent Residence Certificates, the BJP questioned the authenticity of Aadhaar and EPIC cards and suggested accepting certificates issued and duly signed by Group-A officers for the SIR exercise.
The letter added, “These certificates are being issued indiscriminately by local authorities under the control of political functionaries. In many cases, they are based merely on Aadhaar or EPIC cards, which themselves are under question regarding authenticity.”
“Only certificates issued and duly signed by Group-A officers should be accepted. Further, every such certificate must be cross-verified by sending it to the issuing authority to confirm authenticity and residency,” the party suggested.
Indicating at “manipulation” of forest rights certificates, the BJP recommended, “Only Forest Rights Certificates issued prior to April 2, 2025, should be considered valid for SIR. Certificates issued on and from April 2, 2025, may only be considered if certified to be in accordance with the rules governing the issue of such certificates by a competent cadre officer.”