A fiery political storm erupted in West Bengal on Friday, October 10, 2025, as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of threatening "riots and violence" if the Election Commission of India (ECI) moves forward with its proposed Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The escalation follows Banerjee’s scathing remarks a day earlier, where she warned that the SIR, planned ahead of the 2026 assembly elections, was the BJP "playing with fire" and a "betrayal of democracy."

Speaking at a press conference, BJP national spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra called Banerjee’s statements "shocking" and "irresponsible," alleging she was inciting unrest to protect "illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltrators" in the voter lists. "Mamata ji is threatening that if a constitutional process starts in Bengal, she will engineer riots and terrible consequences," Patra charged, questioning whether the Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader considered herself above the Constitution crafted by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. He further accused her of fostering violence, pointing to recent attacks on BJP leaders, including tribal MP Khagen Murmu, as evidence of her instigation.

Banerjee, in her Thursday outburst, claimed her state officials were being coerced even before the ECI announced poll dates, framing the SIR as a BJP-orchestrated plot to manipulate voter rolls. The ECI, sources say, has decided in principle to conduct the revision in West Bengal and other poll-bound states to ensure only eligible citizens are listed, a move the BJP defends as critical for fair elections. Patra retorted that Banerjee’s opposition stems from fear of losing her "vote bank" of non-citizens, urging her to challenge the ECI legally rather than resorting to threats.

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The clash amplifies tensions in a state already polarized by identity politics and border issues. West Bengal, with its history of volatile electoral battles, faces heightened scrutiny as the SIR aims to purge ineligible voters, a process the BJP insists safeguards democracy but the TMC decries as exclusionary. Banerjee’s warning of "horrifying consequences" has raised alarms about potential unrest, while the BJP’s counterattack paints her as undermining constitutional norms for political gain.

As the 2026 polls loom, this showdown sets the stage for a bitter campaign, with the ECI caught between its mandate and a charged political crossfire. Whether Banerjee’s defiance rallies her base or backfires under national scrutiny remains to be seen, but the battle over Bengal’s voter rolls is shaping up as a defining flashpoint.

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