Kolkata, India – In a significant escalation of concerns over the integrity of the electoral process, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has penned a sharply worded letter to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, alleging widespread flaws in the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and serious errors stemming from AI-driven digitisation. The missive, her fifth on the contentious issue, highlights fears of mass disenfranchisement and an erosion of democratic principles, demanding immediate intervention from the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The Chief Minister’s latest communication, sent on Monday, January 12, 2026, casts a critical spotlight on the comprehensive voter verification exercise, asserting that it has become “largely mechanical, driven purely by technical data” and is “completely devoid of the application of mind, sensitivity and human touch” indispensable for such a crucial process. Banerjee contends that the EC is disowning its own statutory processes developed over the past two decades, compelling millions of electors to re-establish their identity despite previous quasi-judicial hearings and corrections. This approach, she argues, is “arbitrary, illogical and contrary to the letter and spirit of the Constitution of India.”
At the heart of the controversy are the errors attributed to the Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools utilised for digitising the 2002 electoral rolls. According to the Chief Minister, the scanning and translation of old, manual voter lists, including those in vernacular scripts, into English using AI have introduced “serious errors in elector particulars such as name, age, sex, relationship and guardian’s names.” These inaccuracies have led to “large-scale data mismatches” and the wrongful categorisation of genuine voters as having “logical discrepancies.” Initially, over 1.36 crore voters in West Bengal were flagged for such discrepancies, a number that, while reduced to approximately 86 lakh after some human scrutiny, remains alarmingly high.
Banerjee’s letter details numerous procedural lapses, including the failure to issue proper acknowledgements for documents submitted by citizens during the SIR exercise. She further alleges that women electors, particularly those who have moved to matrimonial homes and changed surnames, are being “questioned and summoned for hearings to prove their identity,” a practice she describes as a “grave insult to women and genuine voters” and a reflection of a “complete lack of social sensitivity.” The Chief Minister also expressed shock that prominent personalities, including Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen and acclaimed poet Joy Goswami, have reportedly been subjected to this “inhuman process,” forced to verify their credentials.
The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is an exercise undertaken by the Election Commission of India to thoroughly update, verify, and correct voter lists, often preceding major elections. While routine roll updates occur annually, SIR is designed to be a more comprehensive, time-bound house-to-house verification drive aimed at ensuring accurate, inclusive, and error-free electoral rolls. However, in West Bengal, the process has triggered intense political contention, with the ruling Trinamool Congress accusing the ECI of bias and weaponising the electoral rolls.
The scale of the alleged deletions is another major point of contention. The draft electoral roll published on December 16, 2025, reportedly saw the deletion of over 58 lakh names without proper notice or personal hearings. Banerjee claims that the Election Commission’s objective “seems neither of correction nor of inclusion in the electoral rolls, but solely of deletion and of exclusion,” hinting at a “disturbing pattern of political bias.” She had previously made explosive allegations of 77 deaths, four suicide attempts, and 17 hospitalisations linked to the stress and pressure caused by the revision drive, accusing the ECI of conducting the process without adequate planning.
The contentious nature of the SIR process in West Bengal has also seen an Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) in Howrah resign, publicly questioning the logic of the discrepancies identified by the SIR software and warning of potential disenfranchisement for poor and marginalised voters. This internal dissent further underscores the gravity of the concerns raised by the Chief Minister.
With the deadline for claims and objections set for January 15, 2026, the Chief Minister has urged the CEC to immediately address these issues to “end the harassment and agony of the citizens and the official machinery” and safeguard democratic rights. The Supreme Court has already issued a notice on a plea by TMC MPs alleging irregularities in the SIR in West Bengal, indicating the national importance and legal ramifications of this contentious electoral roll revision. The evolving situation demands close scrutiny to ensure that the bedrock of India’s democracy remains robust and untainted.
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