Mamata vows to protect voter rights, accuses BJP of ‘snatching voting rights’

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday, 21 March, accused the BJP-led Centre of attempting to “snatch away the voting rights” of people through the ongoing revision of electoral rolls ahead of the assembly polls.

Addressing thousands of worshippers after Eid prayers at Kolkata’s Red Road, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo alleged that the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls—which the ruling party claims has led to large-scale deletions of voter names—was part of a broader attempt to influence the electoral process in the state.

“We will not allow Modiji and the BJP to take away your voting rights. We will fight till the end to protect democracy and the rights of every citizen,” Banerjee said at the gathering.

Her remarks come amid an intensifying political row over the electoral roll scrutiny exercise, which the TMC has repeatedly described as an attempt to remove names of genuine voters, particularly from minority-dominated areas, ahead of the assembly polls.

Banerjee warned that any move to disenfranchise voters in the name of revision or verification of electoral rolls would be resisted by her party.

“Those who are targeting Bengal and trying to divide people should go to hell,” she said, drawing loud cheers from the gathering.

The chief minister also invoked Bengal’s long tradition of communal harmony, saying the state would not allow forces trying to polarise society to succeed.

“Bengal believes in unity. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians—everyone lives together here. We will not allow anyone to break this social fabric,” she said.

The annual Eid congregation at Red Road—one of the largest in eastern India—has often doubled as a political platform during election years, offering parties an opportunity to reach out to the state’s sizeable Muslim electorate, which constitutes around 30 per cent of the population.

This year’s event carries added political significance as the state heads towards a high-stakes assembly election, with the TMC seeking a fourth consecutive term while the BJP attempts to consolidate the gains it made in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 assembly elections.