New Delhi: The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) has issued a stinging rebuke to the Election Commission of India (ECI), accusing the poll body of making misleading claims about the political parties’ support for the ongoing revision of electoral rolls and warning against what it called attempts to serve the agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-Bharatiya Janata Party (RSS-BJP) combine.

In a letter addressed to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Wednesday (March 11), the CPI(M) West Bengal state committee protested the commission’s press release of March 9, which claimed that most political parties had appreciated the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. The party said the statement was “a complete misrepresentation of facts.” 

Calling the claim a “travesty of the truth,” the CPI(M) said the commission had failed to disclose the names of political parties that had supported or opposed the process while projecting an impression of broad consensus.

"The most contentious part of the statement was your claim that ‘most political parties appreciated’ the massive Special Intensive Revision
(SIR) exercise. The commission further stated that parties expressed ‘complete faith and trust’ in the process and its objective of ensuring a pure electoral roll where no eligible voter is left out. It is a travesty of the truth to withhold the names of the political parties who voiced their appreciation and those who stood in opposition," the CPI(M) wrote.

The party said it had consistently conveyed its grave reservations about the revision exercise through written submissions and oral depositions before the full bench of the commission. "The CPI(M) has consistently conveyed its grave reservations both in writing and during oral depositions before the full bench of the commission. It is therefore startling that a constitutional body of your stature would issue a statement that so blatantly overlooks our documented dissent."

The party has accused the ECI of pushing more than 60 lakh voters in West Bengal into uncertainty regarding their fundamental right to vote through what it described as an opaque verification process that cites logical discrepancies to question voter eligibility. 

In the letter, signed by CPI(M) state secretary Md. Salim, the party warned against any attempt to tailor electoral rolls to suit the ideological agenda of the RSS-BJP combine. It said such actions would violate the constitutional mandate of the commission and undermine the integrity of the electoral process. 

"We demand that no eligible voter be disenfranchised based on political, religious, social affiliations or on economic standing. Any attempt to tailor the electoral rolls to suit the ideological agenda of the RSS-BJP combine is a violation of the commission’s constitutional mandate," the party wrote.

The CPI(M) termed the situation an administrative failure on the part of the commission, and alleged that the partisan conduct of certain West Bengal government officials, acting in favour of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), had complicated the process and contributed to the situation. 

Citing the unprecedented intervention of the judiciary in the verification of SIR-related documents, the party alleged serious administrative lapses in the conduct of the revision exercise. It urged the commission to correct what it termed misinformation and ensure that the revision of electoral rolls is conducted in a transparent, fair and inclusive manner so that no eligible voter is disenfranchised on political, religious or social grounds. 

The party also called upon citizens to remain vigilant in safeguarding their democratic rights and electoral franchise.

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