West Bengal’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has rejected CM Mamata Banerjee’s claims of electoral fraud, asserting that the voter roll update process adheres to established legal guidelines.
Slamming the West Bengal Chief Minister over claims of fraud during elections, the West Bengal CEO responded on its official account on X, detailing the procedures for updating electoral rolls, citing the Representation of the People Act, 1950, the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, and the Manual on Electoral Rolls.
This is done with active participation of Booth Level Agents appointed by political parties.
— CEO West Bengal (@CEOWestBengal) February 28, 2025
Any specific claim or objections are to be made first before the concerned 80,633 BLOs, 3,049 AEROs and 294 EROs in West Bengal. (2/2)@ECISVEEP @SpokespersonECI @PIBKolkata
“The process involves BLOs, AEROs, EROs, DEOs, and CEOs across all States and UTs,” the post stated. “Political parties actively participate through Booth Level Agents, and any objections must first be raised with the designated 80,633 BLOs, 3,049 AEROs, and 294 EROs in West Bengal.”
The Chief Electoral Officer’s response came in the wake of the announcement made by Ms Banerjee about the formation of a committee to investigate alleged voter list irregularities in the state.
On Thursday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the BJP of manipulating voter lists, comparing the situation in West Bengal to alleged electoral irregularities in Maharashtra and Delhi. She claimed the BJP had used similar tactics in other states and was now attempting to replicate them in West Bengal.
“From the Election Commissioner’s office, they have fabricated a fake voter list online, adding fraudulent voters in every district of West Bengal,” Ms Banerjee alleged. “This strategy helped them win elections in Delhi and Maharashtra, where the opposition was unaware of such manipulations. Most of these fake voters come from Haryana and Gujarat. With the Election Commission’s backing, the BJP is altering the voter list, undermining Bengal’s legacy of independence.”
