Mamata to Lead Mass Mobilisations Across Border Districts in Protest Against SIR

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is intensifying her vehement opposition to the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, scheduling a series of high-stakes public rallies in three politically volatile border districts this week and next. The Trinamool Congress leader will address gatherings at Gajole in Malda on December 3 and Berhampore stadium in Murshidabad on December 4, culminating in a grand mobilisation at the historic Rash Mela Maidan in Cooch Behar on December 9, which party officials are touting as her largest northern Bengal event of the winter season.

This aggressive escalation represents the second phase of Banerjee's anti-SIR drive, building on her impassioned address in Bongaon last week within the refugee-heavy Matua belt, where she accused authorities of exploiting the revision process to harass and intimidate families along the border. The strategically selected venues—districts abutting Bangladesh with substantial minority, migrant, and displaced populations—underscore the Trinamool Congress's intent to confront what it deems a targeted assault on vulnerable communities' electoral rights.

Trinamool sources indicate the rallies form a deliberate district-by-district counterstrategy to dismantle the Bharatiya Janata Party's rhetoric on purging "infiltrators" from voter lists, reframing the narrative around the SIR's alleged overreach in scrutinising documents, identities, and citizenship proofs. Preparations are in full motion, with an emergency convening of block presidents slated for December 1 in Cooch Behar, followed by a comprehensive district-level briefing at Rabindra Bhavan on December 2, drawing in ministers, parliamentarians, legislators, and local functionaries to orchestrate maximum participation.

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Anticipated crowds in Cooch Behar are projected to swell from rural strongholds such as Dinhata, Sitai, Sitalkuchi, and Mekhliganj, where the SIR's demands for historical documentation have sown alarm among impoverished households long settled in the region. Booth-level outreach campaigns have already commenced, emphasising the revision's disproportionate burden on border residents and those with ancestral cross-border ties, positioning Banerjee as their foremost defender against perceived disenfranchisement.

The Bharatiya Janata Party has responded with fierce condemnation, charging the Trinamool Congress with safeguarding illegal entrants and subverting a necessary electoral purification for short-term political advantage. As both major parties weaponise the SIR controversy to galvanise bases ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, Banerjee's forthcoming addresses are poised to sharpen West Bengal's deepening schism over identity, belonging, and the sanctity of the voter rolls.

Also Read: Mamata Banerjee Warns SIR Could Lead to NRC and Threaten Citizenship on Constitution Day