Millions of Muslims in Indias Bengal face loss of voting rights

West Bengal Set to Vote Amid Controversy Over Electoral Roll Revision

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has revised its electoral rolls through a special intensive revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal, which is set to hold a two-phase assembly election on April 23 and April 29. The ECI’s decision has resulted in the exclusion of nearly nine million voters from the final list, including over three million who will not be able to vote until special tribunals hear their cases.

Nabijan Mondal, a 73-year-old resident of West Bengal, was surprised to find her name missing from the voter list despite having voted in every Indian election for the past 50 years. The discrepancy arose due to differences in her name on various government documents, including her biometric ID and ration cards.

According to official data, nearly 12 percent of West Bengal’s 76 million voters have been affected by the SIR process. Almost six million of these nine million voters have been declared absentee or deceased, while the remaining three million will face difficulties in proving their voting rights before the polling days.

The Supreme Court of India has ruled that those whose cases are pending before the tribunals cannot vote in the April election. However, the court has allowed the ECI to publish supplementary voter lists before the election.

Analysis suggests that Muslims have been disproportionately affected by the SIR exercise, particularly in districts with high Muslim populations such as Murshidabad and North 24 Parganas. Nearly a dozen Muslim families in these areas reported difficulties in proving their residential status or discrepancies in their names on various documents.

The upcoming assembly election in West Bengal is expected to be closely contested, with the Trinamool Congress party facing opposition from the BJP.

Source: Al Jazeera