In a fiery display of dissent, Trinamool Congress workers in West Bengal’s Hasnabad blocked key roads and set ablaze tires late Saturday, protesting the removal of thousands of names from the final voter list. The unrest in North 24 Parganas comes amid the Election Commission’s freshly published electoral rolls post-Special Intensive Revision.
Demonstrators didn’t hold back, burning a mock effigy of BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari while hurling accusations at the poll panel for bias. Lebukhali Road was choked, halting all movement until police arrived to clear the blockade.
At the heart of the fury: allegations of selective deletions from minority booths. TMC leaders highlighted Booth 111 in Shahpur, where 400 minority voters—out of 1,065 total—were struck off, compared to just deletions among Hindu names. ‘This booth is minority-majority, and they’ve wiped out our people,’ said Shahjahan Moral.
The party claims 16,125 names vanished from Basirhat sub-division, including Hasnabad under Basirhat Dakshin. ‘ECI and BJP are colluding to disenfranchise legitimate voters,’ TMC charged, labeling it an electoral sabotage.
This isn’t isolated—protests have mushroomed statewide since the list’s release. What was meant as a cleanup drive has fueled claims of foul play, especially in TMC strongholds. Authorities quelled the immediate chaos, but underlying tensions signal deeper political battles ahead.
With elections on the horizon, these voter list disputes could reshape the electoral landscape. TMC demands a probe and reinstatement, while silence from the ECI keeps the pot boiling.