Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of spreading fear, and termed SIR as “NRC by another name” Abhishek Banerjee of West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress has blamed the Centre’s ruling BJP and the Election Commission of India for creating anxiety that allegedly claimed the life of a man near Kolkata.
He also told people to “confront and “tie up” local BJP leaders “if they ask for your parents’ birth certificates” during the recently-begun Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, or if a National Register of Citizens (NRC) is carried out. The Lok Sabha member made the comments after he visited the family of a 57-year-old man who allegedly died by suicide at Panihati near the state capital.
Linking the death directly to SIR — EC started it on October 28 in 12 states, including poll-bound Bengal — the TMC general secretary claimed that the anxiety created by the BJP and the EC drove the man to take the extreme step. The BJP has countered that the cause of death should be determined by investigators rather than political accusations.
Abhishek, nephew of CM Mamata Banerjee, accused Union home minister Amit Shah and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of being responsible for a “climate of panic”. He asked questioning whether the two men would be able to furnish the documents “which they have sought from ordinary citizens”. The BJP has backed the SIR, and the EC has remained firm that it’s acting as an independent body for its aim of ensuring watertight electoral rolls.
What’s the NRC fear linked to SIR?
One of the issues linked to the SIR is the claim that foreigners, such as Muslims from Bangladesh, are illegally on voter lists. That’s why the SIR is being seen by Opposition parties as “NRC by another name”.
The NRC and the Citizenship Amendment Act of 2019 have remained flashpoints over religion being a factor by which certain immigrants may get legal status. The CAA is seen by some as a method by which non-Muslims could manage to get citizenship if an NRC is done and people are unable to produce the required documents. The poor and dispossessed in general are vulnerable when documents are sought, the TMC and others have argued. It’s this anxiety that Abhishek Banerjee spoke of when he addressed supporters on Wednesday.
“Next time local BJP leaders come to your area, stop them and ask them to furnish their parents’ certificates! Tie them to a tree or lamp post and tell them they won’t be released until they produce their parents’ and grandparents’ documents,” he said. “We do not believe in violence. Don’t hit them, just tie them up if they ask for your parents’ birth certificates,” he added.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the BJP of spreading fear and “weaponising NRC”. The BJP said the SIR is a routine electoral revision exercise, and accused the TMC of exploiting a tragedy such as the man’s suicide for political mileage. This series of incidents has reignited Bengal’s fierce citizenship debate as the state is set for an assembly election by March 2026.
