Mamata responsible for 27 lakh deletions, says Suvendu Adhikari
Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday blamed Mamata Banerjee for the deletion of 27 lakh names from West Bengal's electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision, saying neither the BJP nor the Election Commission was responsible. He said judicial officers took the decision following Supreme Court directions in a case filed by her. Adhikari said his side won 208 seats against 80 for TMC and its allies, and that Banerjee could not accept the people's verdict. Her party has demanded restoration of genuine voters.
Source
NDTV — Top Stories · read the original report ↗
Desk check · some claims need care
What the desk checked (5)
- 27 lakh names were deleted from West Bengal's electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision. — Figure appears in source, attributed to Suvendu Adhikari; no independent data cited.
- Deletions were made by judicial officers following Supreme Court directions in a case filed by Mamata Banerjee. — Attributed to Adhikari; no court order or case details given in source.
- BJP won 208 seats while TMC and allies got 80. — Quoted from Adhikari; source gives no independent confirmation of the tally.
- Two Election Commissioners objected on several occasions to SIR-linked decisions. — Attributed to an Indian Express investigation; the Election Commission's denial that final decisions were unanimous is also reported.
- Adhikari is West Bengal Chief Minister and Banerjee the former Chief Minister. — Source states this but also repeatedly calls Adhikari 'the chief minister' and Banerjee's remarks separately — internally inconsistent, editor should check.
Analysts’ view opinion
This is a post-election battle over who owns the blame. As the new Chief Minister, Suvendu Adhikari is working to move the 27-lakh deletion issue away from the BJP and the Election Commission and onto three anchors — a Supreme Court direction, judicial officers, and a case filed by Mamata Banerjee herself. Banerjee, for her part, is keeping the SIR alive as a mobilising cause after defeat, which arguably suits both sides: one gets to pivot to governance, the other gets to hold the opposition space.
- Repeating the 208–80 figure is a deliberate attempt to shift the debate from the legality of the deletions to Banerjee's alleged refusal to accept the mandate.
- Pointing out that the case was filed by Banerjee and decided by judicial officers is a classic defence of relocating political responsibility into the judicial sphere.
- The 'good in Kerala, bad in Bengal' line is designed to frame the TMC's objection as selective rather than principled.
- Adhikari's use of the reported commissioners' objections to argue that decisions were not the CEC's alone is notable, though the Commission maintains internal differences are normal and its final decisions unanimous.
- For the TMC, the restoration demand offers a way to rebuild cadre morale and convert affected voters into a durable constituency.
What to watch — Watch whether the Election Commission moves on restoration of names, and whether Banerjee escalates in court or on the streets — that choice will set the next phase of the confrontation.
The story does not establish how many of the 27 lakh deletions involved genuine voters or how the process was actually conducted; it records competing political claims, not a verified account.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 5 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
West Bengal's electoral rolls were revised through a Special Intensive Revision (SIR), during which 27 lakh names were deleted. Following Assembly elections in which, by his account, his side won 208 seats against 80 for the TMC and its allies, Suvendu Adhikari is now Chief Minister and Mamata Banerjee the former Chief Minister. Banerjee's party alleges genuine voters were struck off and wants them restored, while Adhikari says the deletions flowed from Supreme Court directions in a case Banerjee herself filed. The dispute overlaps with a controversy over how decisions were taken inside the three-member Election Commission.
Key facts
- 27 lakh names were deleted from West Bengal's electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).
- Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Sunday that neither the BJP nor the Election Commission was responsible for the deletions.
- Adhikari said the deletions were carried out by judicial officers pursuant to Supreme Court directions in a case filed by Mamata Banerjee herself.
- Adhikari claimed his side won 208 seats while the TMC and its allies together got 80.
- Adhikari asked: "If SIR is good in Kerala, why is it bad in West Bengal?"
- Banerjee addressed a rally at Serampore a day earlier, attacking the Election Commission and the BJP over the voter-roll revision.
- Adhikari cited Saturday's meeting of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi to argue Bengal SIR decisions were not taken by the CEC alone.
- An Indian Express investigation reported that the two election commissioners had raised objections on several occasions to decisions linked to the SIR exercise; the Commission said internal differences are normal and final decisions were unanimous.
Timeline
- Before the current row (date not stated in the source)Mamata Banerjee files a case; the Supreme Court issues directions under which judicial officers decide on deletions during the SIR.
- Assembly elections (date not stated in the source)Adhikari's side wins 208 seats against 80 for the TMC and its allies; Adhikari becomes Chief Minister.
- SaturdayCEC Gyanesh Kumar meets Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi; the poll panel issues a statement.
- Saturday (a day before Adhikari's remarks)Banerjee addresses a rally at Serampore attacking the Election Commission and the BJP over the voter-roll revision.
- SundayAdhikari, at a press conference, blames Banerjee for the 27 lakh deletions and says she cannot accept the people's verdict.
Who has a stake
- Suvendu Adhikari, West Bengal Chief Minister — Seeks to deflect blame for 27 lakh deletions onto Banerjee and frame the SIR row as her refusal to accept the electoral verdict.
- Mamata Banerjee, former Chief Minister — Alleges genuine voters were deleted, demands their restoration, and is attacking the Election Commission and the BJP over the revision.
- Trinamool Congress and its allies — Reduced to 80 seats; pressing the case that the SIR wrongly removed voters from the rolls.
- Election Commission of India (CEC Gyanesh Kumar, ECs Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, Vivek Joshi) — Its credibility and internal decision-making process on the Bengal SIR are under scrutiny; maintains final decisions were unanimous.
- Supreme Court and judicial officers — Court directions in Banerjee's case formed the basis on which judicial officers decided the deletions, per Adhikari.
- 27 lakh deleted voters in West Bengal — Their right to vote depends on whether names wrongly removed are restored to the rolls.
Why it matters
Mass deletion of 27 lakh names touches the core of the right to vote and the integrity of electoral rolls, making the SIR a constitutional question and not merely a partisan one. The reported disagreement between the CEC and the two Election Commissioners raises questions about collegiality and transparency in a body whose decisions must command cross-party trust. How the restoration demand is handled will shape confidence in future roll revisions in other states.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is the voter-roll revision exercise at the centre of the West Bengal dispute; 27 lakh names were deleted.
- The Election Commission of India is a three-member body: CEC Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.
- Adhikari said judicial officers made deletion decisions following Supreme Court directions in a case filed by Mamata Banerjee.
- Claimed Assembly outcome per Adhikari: 208 seats for his side, 80 for TMC and its allies.
- Banerjee's rally against the EC and BJP over the voter-roll revision was held at Serampore.
- The EC's position: differences in internal deliberations are normal and its final decisions were unanimous.
Mains framing
The West Bengal SIR row shows how roll revision, an ordinarily administrative exercise, can become the central axis of political contestation once the scale of deletion, 27 lakh names, is large enough to raise questions of disenfranchisement. Two competing accountability claims are in play: the government's, that deletions were made by judicial officers acting on Supreme Court directions in a case filed by Mamata Banerjee, so neither the BJP nor the Election Commission bears responsibility; and the TMC's, that genuine voters were removed and must be restored. Complicating both is the reported friction within the three-member Election Commission, where the two Election Commissioners are said to have objected to several SIR-linked decisions while the Commission insists final decisions were unanimous, a dispute that goes to the question of whether the poll panel functions as a collegial body. The way forward lies in transparent publication of deletion grounds, accessible claims and objections machinery so that wrongly excluded voters can be restored, and clearer disclosure of how multi-member EC decisions are recorded, so that an exercise meant to purify rolls does not itself become the ground for contesting an election result.
Key terms
- Special Intensive Revision (SIR)
- The intensive electoral-roll revision exercise under which 27 lakh names were deleted in West Bengal.
- Electoral roll
- The official list of registered voters for a constituency; deletion from it means loss of the ability to vote.
- Election Commission of India
- The poll body conducting the SIR, currently comprising the Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners.
- Chief Election Commissioner (CEC)
- Head of the Election Commission; currently Gyanesh Kumar, whose role in Bengal SIR decisions is disputed.
- Judicial officers (in SIR)
- Officials who, per Adhikari, decided the deletions in line with Supreme Court directions in a case filed by Banerjee.
- Restoration of voters
- The TMC's demand that names of genuine voters deleted during the SIR be put back on the rolls.
Practice questions
- Critically examine the constitutional and democratic implications of large-scale deletions from electoral rolls, using the West Bengal SIR controversy as a reference point.
- "Collegiality is essential to the credibility of a multi-member Election Commission." Discuss in the light of the reported differences between the CEC and the two Election Commissioners over the Bengal SIR.
- Who bears responsibility for deletions made during a court-supervised electoral roll revision, the poll body, the executive or the judiciary? Analyse with reference to the competing claims in West Bengal.
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.