Kolkata, Dec 27, 2025: The ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in West Bengal has sparked a political controversy after at least four family members of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar were summoned for hearings, drawing accusations and counter-claims from the ruling party and the opposition. The incident has intensified the already heated discourse around voter list corrections ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.

The SIR process, aimed at updating the voter rolls, officially began in West Bengal on November 4, 2025, with the draft electoral roll published on December 16. Authorities stated that the revision is part of a nationwide effort to remove duplicate, deceased, and otherwise invalid entries from voter lists, ensuring the integrity of elections. Over 16.3 million voters in the state have discrepancies in their enumeration forms, which the Election Commission of India (ECI) is seeking to resolve through hearings and document verification.

The controversy arose when MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, who is also the TMC’s chief whip in the Lok Sabha, revealed that her mother, sister, and two sons had been called for hearings as part of the SIR process. Dastidar, along with her mother Ira Mitra and sister Piyali Mitra, are registered voters in Madhyamgram, North 24 Parganas. Her two sons, Biswanath and Baidyanath, were also summoned.

Speaking to the press, Dastidar emphasized her political experience, stating, “I have been in politics for 50 years. If the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) can target my family like this, then imagine what could happen to a common citizen. We will cooperate with the ECI and produce any documents required, but this shows the scale of impact the process can have.”

Local authorities clarified that the family was called because of discrepancies in their enumeration forms. Kapil Ananda Haldar, a Booth Level Officer in Madhyamgram, explained, “Their names appeared in the draft roll. There might have been some mistakes in the forms or corrections needed, for which they have been called. For instance, Piyali Mitra has a hearing scheduled for December 31, while Ira Mitra has been asked to provide supporting documents on January 8.”

The ruling party, however, interpreted the summons as politically motivated. State minister Chandrima Bhattacharya, who led a TMC delegation to meet Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Kumar Agarwal, accused the ECI of attempting to suppress TMC votes. “The ECI is working beyond its jurisdiction. The main aim appears to be the deletion of names to favour a political party. They are targeting at least 20 million voters,” Bhattacharya said.

In contrast, the BJP defended the ECI’s actions, asserting that the voter roll revision is a routine and necessary administrative process. Union minister Sukanta Majumdar said, “The ECI is doing its job to clean up the voter list. Political parties should assist the poll panel. The TMC appears unnerved because fake and illegal voters constitute its main vote bank. Once these entries are removed, the TMC cannot rely on them to win elections.”

Reports indicate that over three million voters, whose names could not be matched with the 2002 voter list used during the previous SIR, will be called for hearings. The hearings, which commenced on Saturday, are scheduled to continue until February 7, 2026, with the final electoral roll expected to be published on February 14. The process is intended to provide every eligible voter the opportunity to verify their registration details and correct any discrepancies.

Several residents outside North 24 Parganas have also received notices from the ECI. Subol Chandra Manna, a resident of Kakdwip in South 24 Parganas, noted that all five members of his family were called for hearings due to issues in their enumeration forms. “We submitted documents including Aadhaar cards and school certificates to resolve the discrepancies,” he said. Similarly, Sipra Chowdhury from Bhowanipore in south Kolkata stated that her name had not appeared in the 2002 voter list, requiring her to submit documents during the hearing.

The scale of the hearings has led both TMC and BJP workers to set up help desks outside offices conducting the verification process. These desks assist voters in understanding the notices, arranging necessary documentation, and ensuring compliance with the ECI’s requirements. The move underscores the administrative challenge of reconciling millions of voter records with historical data, while simultaneously handling concerns about fairness and political bias.

Analysts note that the controversy over the summons of MP Dastidar’s family highlights a broader tension between political narratives and administrative processes. While the ECI maintains that hearings are standard procedure to validate and update electoral rolls, political parties see them as opportunities to influence public perception, especially in the context of upcoming elections.

The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) itself is a rigorous exercise. It not only removes duplicate, deceased, or shifted voters but also provides a platform for objections and corrections. In West Bengal, the draft roll already saw the deletion of around 5.8 million entries corresponding to voters who were dead, absent, duplicated, or shifted. Such measures are crucial to maintaining the integrity of elections, though they inevitably generate procedural and political challenges.

Observers highlight that the calls for hearings, while administrative, can have unintended political ramifications, particularly when they involve families of prominent politicians. In Dastidar’s case, her prominence as a senior TMC leader magnifies the visibility of the hearings and the political narrative surrounding them. The opposition BJP has leveraged this to underline the importance of a clean electoral roll, while the TMC frames it as targeted harassment.

Experts also point out the importance of transparency and public awareness during such large-scale revisions. Ensuring that voters understand their rights, the reasons for summons, and the documentation required can help mitigate political controversies. At the same time, the political interpretations by different parties are likely to continue dominating headlines until the final publication of the electoral rolls.

In the broader context, the SIR in West Bengal forms part of the nationwide initiative by the Election Commission of India to maintain accurate voter lists ahead of the 2026 assembly elections. With millions of entries under scrutiny and potential hearings continuing for weeks, the exercise aims to balance administrative rigor with political sensitivity.

As the hearings proceed, the focus remains on ensuring due process, transparency, and fairness, while addressing any discrepancies in voter registration. For voters like Dastidar’s family and other affected residents, this means preparing necessary documentation, attending hearings, and cooperating with officials to validate entries.

With the final electoral roll expected by February 14, 2026, all political parties and voters are likely to closely monitor developments. The intersection of administrative necessity and political perception ensures that the SIR hearings will continue to attract significant attention, and the case of TMC MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar’s family will remain a reference point in ongoing debates about the exercise’s implications.

In conclusion, the ongoing Special Intensive Revision in West Bengal underscores the challenges of maintaining electoral integrity in a politically charged environment. While the ECI seeks to update and verify the voter list through structured hearings, the involvement of politically prominent families has intensified scrutiny and sparked debates on fairness, administrative procedure, and potential political bias. As hearings continue over the next several weeks, authorities are tasked with ensuring the process remains transparent, impartial, and inclusive for all eligible voters.

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