50 BJP families switch to TMC in Matua belt, cite voter deletion as reason

Kolkata/Behrampore: Voter deletions on account of the Special Intensive Revision is fuelling anger against BJP in Bengal's Matua-dominated belt. Nearly 50 families, all BJP supporters, from Bagdah's Boyra gram panchayat formally joined Trinamool on Sunday, citing voter deletions as the reason for their defection.Local sources said several members of the defecting families had their names dropped from the final voter list during the SIR process, stoking resentment against local BJP netas.In Mondopghata village, 47 names under booth no. 127 were initially marked "under adjudication" before being deleted. "My name has been removed from the voter list. I receive an old-age pension and fear I may lose it if I am no longer an enrolled voter," said local Matua resident Ashutosh Biswas.Another resident, Moti Sadhak, said five family members were removed earlier, and his own name has since been deleted as well.The scale of deletions across the area is significant. The supplementary list recorded 1,993 deletions in Bagdah assembly constituency, 2,240 in Gaighata, 264 in Bongaon North and 66 in Bongaon South — with roughly 80% of those affected being Matua refugees, according to administrative sources.Previously, 15,303 names were removed from the final list in Bagdah, with over 13,000 categorised as "under adjudication," a large number of whom are now missing from the rolls entirely.A similar pattern emerged at booth no. 133 in Puratan Helencha, where 42 of 43 names previously marked "under adjudication" have been excluded."My parents and grandmother have been voting since 2002. I was born and educated here, yet our names have been removed," said local resident Ambik Biswas.After joining Trinamool, defector Laxman Das said the families were "no longer comfortable in BJP."Bagdah Trinamool senior Mamatabala Thakur said the switchover had strengthened the party's organisation in the area. BJP downplayed the development. "Only a few people joined, allegedly under pressure. The Bongaon subdivision remains a BJP stronghold," said district organisational president Bikash Ghosh.Meanwhile in Murshidabad's Samserganj, all parties except BJP walked out of an all-party meeting convened by the district administration to discuss poll preparedness.In Samserganj, the all-party meeting turned into a political confrontation. Trinamool, Congress, CPM, ISF and SDPI walked out together after alleging that the voter deletions were politically motivated rather than the result of administrative error.The parties decided jointly to approach the EC and demanded the immediate reinstatement of all legitimate voters."None of us signed the attendance register. The voter comes before the vote — if so many people are excluded, what value does the election hold?" said CPM's Modassar Hossain.Trinamool candidate Nur Alam said he had arranged lawyers and data entry operators across every panchayat to assist affected voters.