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West Bengal SIR: Mamata Banerjee wrote a letter to Gyanesh Kumar demanding immediate intervention on the appointment of data entry operators and the proposal of polling centers in private residential complexes. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee raised questions on the fairness of the SIR being conducted in West Bengal.
Kolkata. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday wrote a letter to Chief Election Commissioner (CEO) Gyanesh Kumar, seeking his ‘immediate intervention’ on two recent issues. In the letter, he has mentioned the instructions given by the Chief Electoral Officer of the state to the District Election Officers not to appoint data-entry operators and Bangla Sahayata Kendra employees on contract for SIR or other election related work. The second case is the Election Commission’s proposal to set up polling stations inside private residential complexes.
In the letter shared on ‘X’, the Chief Minister wondered whether these matters were being taken up to help ‘a political party’? In the letter, he wrote, “It has recently come to light that the Chief Electoral Officer of West Bengal has directed the District Election Officers (DEOs) not to appoint data entry operators and Bangla Sahayata Kendra (BSK) employees on contract for SIR related or other election related data work.”
It reads, “With this, the CEO office has issued a request for proposal (RFP) for the appointment of 1,000 data entry operators and 50 software developers for a period of one year.” Trinamool Congress chief Banerjee wondered what was the need to get the same work done by an outside agency for an entire year when district offices already had sufficient number of ‘competent professionals’ for such work.
He said, “Traditionally, regional offices have always been appointing their own contractual data entry personnel as per requirement. If there is an urgent need, the district office officers themselves are fully capable of making such appointment.” Banerjee wondered why the CEO office was playing this role on behalf of the regional offices.
The Chief Minister said in the letter, “Is this exercise being done at the behest of any political party to fulfill vested interests? The timing and manner of this RFP certainly raises legitimate doubts.” The Chief Minister also objected to the reported proposal to set up polling stations inside private residential complexes, claiming that such locations compromise fairness, violate established norms and create a discriminatory gap between residents and the general public.
He claimed that polling stations are always set up in government or semi-government institutions to ensure ease and fairness. Banerjee said, “Why is such a step being considered? Is this being done under the pressure of any political party to further its partisan interests?” Emphasizing that the dignity and credibility of the Election Commission must remain free from faults ‘under any circumstances’, the Chief Minister said, “I urge you to investigate these issues with utmost seriousness, impartiality and transparency.”
