TMC's Abhishek Banerjee Criticizes Election Commission Over Voter List Issues
In a recent press conference, TMC's Abhishek Banerjee condemned the Election Commission of India, referring to it as the "WhatsApp Commission" and demanding an apology for alleged mismanagement during the voter list revision process in West Bengal. He highlighted serious concerns, including the reported deaths of booth-level officers and questioned the selective deployment of election observers. Banerjee plans to meet with the Chief Election Commissioner to address these issues, accusing the Commission of being influenced by the ruling BJP. This controversy raises significant questions about electoral integrity in the state.
Dec 27, 2025, 19:14 IST
TMC's Strong Allegations Against the Election Commission
Abhishek Banerjee, the national general secretary of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), labeled the Election Commission of India (ECI) as the "WhatsApp Commission" during a press conference on Saturday. He demanded that this constitutional body apologize to the people of West Bengal, asserting that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) campaign was conducted to harass the state. He also referenced the alleged deaths of booth-level officers (BLOs) during the SIR process. Last week, a draft of the voter list was published under the SIR in West Bengal.
Banerjee stated that 45 individuals lost their lives during the SIR, with six others hospitalized, and mentioned that 29 BLOs attempted suicide. He expressed frustration over the lack of responses from the Election Commission to five fundamental questions posed by the TMC. Although the Commission claimed to have provided answers to the media, Banerjee questioned their transparency, particularly regarding the deployment of micro observers in West Bengal but not in Gujarat.
He criticized the SIR as a method of tormenting West Bengal, questioning why micro observers were sent to Bengal but not to Gujarat. He pointed out that according to the draft list from the Election Commission, nearly 80% of data mapping is complete, contradicting earlier claims that identifying 40-50% mapping was impossible. Banerjee insisted that the Election Commission should apologize to the people of Bengal, accusing it of operating policies through WhatsApp, thus dubbing it a "WhatsApp Commission."
The TMC MP revealed plans to meet Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar on December 31 to discuss the details of the SIR list. He accused the Election Commission of concealing the "correct list" and being linked to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the center. Banerjee also highlighted the "flaws" present in the ECI application, claiming that a person named Seema Khanna is managing the ECI application.