Ahead of the April State Assembly elections, opposition parties Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M) have urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to ensure violence-free and fair polling across the state. Both parties met separately with the full bench of the ECI, led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, to present their concerns and recommendations for the upcoming elections covering 294 assembly constituencies.

The BJP delegation, including leaders Jagannath Chattopadhyay and Sisir Bajoria, submitted a 16-point charter of demands highlighting security concerns. They requested that elections be conducted in one, two, or three phases and called for proper use and active deployment of the 400 companies of Central forces already stationed in the state. The party expressed concern that confidence-building measures in certain areas were undermined because state police were controlling the movement of Central forces.

“The Commission must ensure a peaceful environment so that voters can cast their votes without fear and terror. Root marches of the Central forces are being conducted in relatively peaceful areas instead of sensitive places,” Bajoria said, urging the ECI to focus on genuinely sensitive areas. The BJP also highlighted challenges arising from the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which removed around 64 lakh voters from the list and placed another 60 lakh in the ‘under adjudication’ category.

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Similarly, the CPI-M delegation, led by Md Salim, submitted their charter of demands to the ECI, raising serious grievances over the categorisation of 60 lakh voters whose voting rights remain pending judicial clearance. “It’s a political conspiracy to land the fate of such a huge number of voters in uncertainty and confusion ahead of polls,” Salim said, adding that elections should not proceed without including these voters. The CPI-M also requested elections be conducted in one or two phases and demanded that each deleted voter be provided a written explanation and a clear appeal process.

Other CPI-M leaders, including Sameek Lahiri, were part of the delegation. The ECI full bench arrived in Kolkata on Sunday amid protests, including ‘go back’ slogans from CPI-M and ruling Trinamool Congress workers. Today, protestors also displayed black flags to the CEC during his visit to the Kalighat temple.

The meetings underscore the heightened political tension in West Bengal ahead of the assembly polls, with opposition parties pressing the ECI for measures to guarantee security, voter inclusion, and transparency in the electoral process.

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