TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee questions Election Commission's role in Bengal polls

    Kolkata, Mar 15 (PTI) Observing that "democracy is under siege in India," Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday questioned the role of the Election Commission (EC) in holding polls in West Bengal and cautioned against alleged attempts by the ruling party at the Centre to add fake names in the voter list "using the EC."
    Banerjee, who alleged that the independent role of the poll panel has been compromised since 2014 when the BJP came to power, was addressing a virtual meeting of the party where all state committee leaders, MPs, MLAs, and local representatives were present to discuss the party's strategy ahead of the 2026 assembly polls and the status of TMC's efforts to detect voter list irregularities in the state, a TMC source said.
    In a statement, Banerjee commented, "Indian democracy is under siege. BJP, in collusion with the ECI has hatched a conspiracy to disenfranchise Bengal's electorate. Multiple voters, primarily from BJP-ruled states, have been assigned the same EPIC number in Bengal — a sinister plot to plant fake voters and manipulate the 2026 Assembly elections."
    At the virtual meeting held earlier in the day, the Diamond Harbour MP cited the alleged inclusion of fake and bogus voters in Maharashtra, where "a staggering 39 lakh voters were added in four months to win elections," the TMC source said.
    He asked the TMC rank and file to be vigilant, saying, "From April 16, verification work will begin, and we must resist any malpractices."
    Banerjee outlined plans for training camps in every assembly constituency, adding, "These will ensure that ground leaders can carry out the verification accordingly," the source said.
    "Today, I convened a virtual meeting with our leaders. We have meticulously examined the irregularities and laid out a comprehensive plan to democratically counteract this fraud. We will not allow this electoral sabotage to succeed. Bengal will fight. Bengal will triumph," Banerjee said in the statement.
    The TMC source, who participated at the meeting, informed that over the next five days, the zila committees will be formed, and from March 21, block committees will be formed by the party within six days. From March 28-April 3, anchal and ward committees will be formed, he added.
    Banerjee also announced that district and block presidents of TMC will be changed soon.
    Questioning the role of the EC, Banerjee said, "In the 2021 assembly elections, the poll panel conducted multiple-phase polls despite the Covid situation and effected the change of district magistrates and police officials to help the BJP at the Centre," the source claimed.
    Citing the Sandeshkhali issue, Banerjee claimed, "Conspiracies were hatched by the Centre using different agencies and spreading false information," according to the source.
    "Attempts were also made to use the heinous crime at RG Kar Hospital against the ruling party, using central agencies and forces to create instability. But the people of Bengal were with us and saw through the conspiracy," Banerjee added.
    On women's empowerment, Banerjee praised the 'Lakshmir Bhandar' project, saying, "Without any central assistance, the state has managed to run the scheme and bring smiles to the faces of economically disadvantaged women."
    Describing the BJP as a party that gives fake promises, Banerjee said, "In Maharashtra, before the polls, they promised to provide money but later held back the funds and cut the budget." "Before the Lok Sabha polls, one of their leaders in Bengal claimed they would stop 'Lakshmir Bhandar', but BJP did not take any action against her," he said, without naming the leader.
    Banerjee also called upon leaders from different districts to focus on areas where TMC did not perform as expected in the previous polls.
    He said, "If we had worked harder, we could have won the Kanthi seat in Purba Medinipur, which was won by the BJP."
    In the city, he emphasised the need for more focus on pockets like Jorasanko and Chowringhee, which have sizable cosmopolitan voters where the BJP could make inroads.
    Banerjee also addressed concerns about extortion attempts, stating, "We have noticed many people trying to extort money in the name of IPAC or from the office of Abhishek Banerjee."
    IPAC is the political consultancy firm employed by TMC in the 2021 assembly polls and later.
    Banerjee also called upon leaders of different districts and pockets to pay attention where TMC didn't perform as expected in the last polls.
    Among other issues, the organisational meeting focused on voter list scrutiny, which had been flagged by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in a public meeting in February, the leader said.
    TMC state president Subrata Bakshi was also present at the meeting.
    Banerjee had been absent at the first meeting of the core committee, which was attended by Bakshi and ministers Aroop Biswas and Firhad Hakim held at Trinamool Bhavan recently.
    Trinamool Congress said in a post on social media said, "On February 27, Smt. @MamataOfficial exposed the ECI's fake voter scam, revealing a grave threat to free and fair elections.
    "Today, our National General Secretary, Shri @abhishekaitc and State President, Shri Subrata Bakshi, convened a key virtual party meeting to address this issue and chart the next course of action." "We stand firm against electoral malpractice - democracy cannot be compromised," the party said in the post on X.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)