Kolkata witnessed an unusual surge of activity on Tuesday as hundreds of sex workers from Sonagachi, Asia’s largest red-light district, thronged Election Commission assistance camps. The rush was prompted by the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which left many residents of the area anxious about the possibility of being excluded from the voters’ list. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of West Bengal, Manoj Agarwal, visited the camps to personally reassure the marginalized community that no eligible voter would be left out of the electoral process.

Anxiety Among Sonagachi’s Residents

Many of the women residing in the congested lanes and cramped ‘kothis’ of Ward Number 18 expressed concern over their inclusion in the electoral rolls. Decades of marginalization, displacement, and trafficking had severed their ties with their natal families, leaving them without conventional proof of identity or ancestry.

“We are being asked about parents from a life we were forced to erase,” said a woman in her early thirties, holding a crumpled form. “Now we are scared we will be erased again,” she added, highlighting the deep sense of vulnerability that the SIR exercise has triggered.

Another resident, Puja Das, 47, recounted how she was lured from Nadia district in her early twenties and had never returned home. “I gave birth here, raised my children here. Suddenly, I am being asked where my parents are, where I was in 2002,” she said. For her, the SIR process felt like a crisis comparable to the hardships endured during the COVID pandemic.

CEO Assures Protection of Voting Rights

In response to the fears, CEO Manoj Agarwal clarified that around 3,500 sex workers in Ward 18, who had not yet been covered under the enumeration drive, would be included in the electoral rolls shortly. “We have been given special powers to include women who were not in the 2002 roll but have voted in 2021 and 2024. Their names will be protected by December 11,” he said.

For those without voting history but possessing other proofs of citizenship, Agarwal said the Election Commission would facilitate submission of Form 6 with annexures from December 16 onward. Verification for such applicants would involve consultation with local residents and registered NGOs working in the area. “We have the target to ensure that not a single eligible voter’s name is left out of the final roll,” he emphasized.

Support from State Authorities and NGOs

West Bengal’s Women and Child Welfare Minister Sashi Panja also visited the camps, reiterating that the state government would safeguard the democratic rights of marginalized citizens. “These women are citizens of this country. Their votes cannot be taken away due to technicalities,” she said.

Volunteers from Amra Padatik, Usha Multipurpose Cooperative Society, and Durbar Mahila Samanwaya Committee provided hands-on assistance in navigating the complicated forms, often filling them on behalf of women who struggled with literacy. “Most of them sign with trembling hands. They fear these papers more than the police,” said volunteer Soma Sen. “We keep telling them this paper is their voice,” she added.

NGO activist Rinku Trivedi highlighted that many women were initially too intimidated to speak directly to officials. “Today, I helped around 50 women talk to the EC officials. They whisper their fears to us first, as if officials are judges,” she said.

Socioeconomic Challenges

The process also raised practical concerns. Some women, like 51-year-old Kohinoor Begum, feared losing daily earnings. “Every hour here means lost earnings. Democracy is important, but so is tonight’s food. If I don’t work, who will feed me?” she asked.

Despite these anxieties, the day’s SIR exercise achieved a symbolic victory. By physically acknowledging the presence of a community often overlooked in public policy, the Election Commission and supporting NGOs reaffirmed that democratic rights extend to all citizens, irrespective of their social or economic circumstances.

As Sonagachi returned to its nightly rhythm, the day’s paperwork had quietly underscored a powerful truth: even in spaces marginalized and ignored, the voice of citizens matters, and no eligible voter will be left behind.