Didi Walks Out Of EC Meeting In A Huff, Calls SIR Unplanned And Arbitrary

The meeting between West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Nirvachan Sadan, New Delhi ended midway after sharp exchanges, with Didi walking out in a huff. She accused CEC Kumar of arrogant behaviour, misconduct and acting at the behest of the BJP. She described the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls as unplanned and arbitrary. The nearly hour-long meeting was convened to discuss the SIR process in West Bengal. She led a delegation comprising her nephew and second in command of the party Abhishek Banerjee and TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee, along with 12 individuals affected by the exercise, including families alleging deaths due to SIR-related stress and voters reportedly marked as dead despite being alive. According to TMC sources, tensions escalated soon after Mamata questioned the conduct of the SIR, raising issues such as reported deaths and hospitalisations, the absence of SIR in Assam, publication of anomalous voter lists in Bengal and the appointment of micro-observers. Abhishek raised detailed objections, while Kalyan Banerjee pointed to legal concerns and Supreme Court directions. The TMC alleged that Kumar repeatedly interrupted the delegation and used dismissive language, leading to walk out of the meeting. The TMC highlighted that among the 12 affected individuals, two were from minority communities and 10 were Hindus, countering BJP claims linking objections to illegal immigrants. Didi warned of intensified protests if the EC did not change its approach and said she would continue the political fight on the streets. The EC rejected the allegations, stating that all questions were answered and warning that the rule of law would be enforced strictly. It accused some TMC legislators of threatening election officials and alleged obstruction of SIR work and non-payment of honorariums to booth-level officers by the Bengal government.