West Bengal elections: All eyes on Matua strongholds of BJP in North 24 Parganas

KOLKATA: A sweeping purge of electoral roll under the SIR has triggered sharp political and social fault lines in North 24 Parganas, with over 12.3 lakh names struck off across three phases since the first draft was published in Dec — the highest in Bengal so far.

The impact has been most severe in the Matua-dominated Bongaon subdivision, where four Assembly segments — Bagdah, Gaighata, Bongaon North and Bongaon South — account for a significant chunk of deletions. Three of these seats are currently held by BJP, and the party led in all four during the last Lok Sabha poll.




Data released by the EC on Tuesday shows that of the 5,91,252 voters placed "under adjudication" in the district, 3,25,666 were declared ineligible. Sources estimate that over 36,000 of those removed belong to the Matua community, concentrated in these four constituencies.

Gaighata is the worst-hit. Of 22,278 voters flagged for scrutiny, 16,222 were deleted. Bagdah saw 5,890 exclusions out of 13,459 such cases, with total deletions in the constituency touching 15,303 from an electorate of 2,63,142. In Bongaon North, 7,926 names were removed, while Bongaon South recorded 6,902 deletions; Swarupnagar and Gaighata saw 2,924 and 6,770 deletions, respectively.

Sukhomoy Haldar of Gaighata alleged targeted exclusion. "We were promised citizenship, but it never happened. Now we are left helpless," he said. In Joygachhi Mathpara, veteran Matua neta Suresh Chandra Baidya Sarkar said the deletion of his name — decades after migrating from Barishal — left his future uncertain. Ramesh Gayen from Bagdah, who applied for citizenship months ago, said delays cost him his vote.

The political blame game has intensified. Trinamool MLA Madhuparna Thakur termed this "unfortunate" and held BJP accountable for "unfulfilled citizenship promises". BJP's Bongaon organisational district president Bikash Ghosh urged voters to approach tribunals, citing SC provisions. The ripple effects extend to urban pockets. Bidhannagar recorded over 54,000 deletions, while Rajarhat-New Town and Rajarhat-Gopalpur saw over 35,000 and 47,000 deletionsd, respectively.
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