It is being said that the upcoming 2026 West Bengal Assembly election is the first-of-its-kind the state has ever seen. What is the electoral mood this year?

The mood is rather grim, thanks to this ill-thought-out exercise called the SIR. Some may assert that Bengal is not new to vote manipulation or rigging. But never before in history has the electoral roll been tampered with in such a manner as has happened ahead of the 2026 polls. You see, initially, we took the "intensive revision" as a well-intentioned move by the ECI [Election Commission of India]. It is something the ECI undertakes from time to time. But, in time, we understood that this was not the usual revision.

How is this SIR different from others?

Ever since the first elections in the 1950s, the CECs have gone out of their way to ensure that voters are actually brought into the fold. This one has moved to repel or eject citizens from the voter list.

Why is there more objection against the SIR in Bengal?

It has affected a drastically high number of voters, to the extent that it feels like wilful targeting, especially of Muslims who make up 27 percent of the state's population, one of the highest across Indian states. The fact that the Supreme Court itself has admitted that, as per its records—now remember we have to go by its records because the CEC is refusing to publish any analytical records, in a manner which is almost obfuscatory—34.5 lakh people have made an appeal, so we can assume that 34.5 lakh people are there, and not being allowed to vote, because they are in appeal state.

What do you think is the intention behind the SIR in Bengal, and the way it has been handled?

I think it is to target minorities. I used the word malafide because a majority of the reductions have all taken place in the border districts. If you move west to Bankura, Birbhum, Hoogly, Howrah, and other hardcore Hindu belts, the deletions are fewer. If you move to Murshidabad, Maldah, Dinajpur, and other parts, including Nadia and South 24 Parganas, which have higher Muslim concentrations, the deletions are abnormally high.

Is it only an ideological or communal compulsion or electoral?

The BJP-RSS are furious with that, because they assume that no Muslim will ever vote for them. One of the reasons they put forward for not winning in the state is because the 27 percent Muslim vote comes in the way of their margins everywhere. At least 72 constituencies are seriously affected by Muslim majority, intensity or influence, so the saffron brigade have focused on these 72 constituencies to ensure that the numbers get deleted, whether they exist or not, in such a manner that this time, the BJP candidate be assured that a lesser number of Muslims come to vote. This is the kind of fecilitation being done. I'll give you an example. In Assembly constituency no. 56 i.e. Shamsherganj of the Muslim-concentrated Murshidabad, statistics have revealed that of those whose names were under adjudication, 91 percent have been rejected. Isn't that abnormal? You can say it's been done by a judicial official, and not the RSS or the BJP. So what? Whether it's been done by a judicial officer or a military officer doesn't matter, they have been deleted—and the party in power approves.

But it isn't just Muslim votes, right? Hindu votes have also been deleted. In fact, over 63 percent of 90 lakh+ deletions are Hindu names.

Yes, it is a self-goal by the BJP. They were probably not expecting it. It just goes to show how little they understand Bengal. There's a large community of immigrants belonging to Hindu Scheduled Castes, who form the Matua community, and have come from East Bangladesh. The Matuas, in Nadia and South 24 Parganas, as well as through Bengal's border belts, have publicly maintained for a long time that they are Hindu refugees who came here fleeing religious persecution. And the Modi government promised them citizenship by bringing the CAA amendment, mainly to cater to the Matua votebank. It worked too.

So, is the TMC going to benefit from this? What about the impact of the deletions on the TMC?

Now, Mamata Banerjee is obviously worried. Because they (the BJP) have targeted, through a computer, the constituencies she has won or winning, and slashed the winning margins with voter deletions. This is not a question that I am raising; it's a question Justice Joymalya Bagchi has raised again and again. He says, what happens if the winning margin is only 2 percent and 15 percent votes have been deleted? He's saying exactly what I am saying, and Mamata Banerjee may perhaps be thinking (the same). That the numbers have been stacked against her. Other than that, there is a serious anti-incumbency wave in Bengal. It's been going on for a long time. So, there is reason to believe that anti-incumbency will also play a role.

Would you say that anti-incumbency is trumping ideological difference?

See, election after election, the narrative that Mamata Banerjee kept reiterating is that Bengal's culture is under threat. Which it is. This Hindi-Hindu-Hindutva ideology is entirely antithetical to Bengali cultural discourse and identity.

Did the RG Kar movement also have an impact on this question of conscience?

Yes, the TMC should not have ignored it. The movement was one of the biggest watershed moments I have seen in Bengal in many years. It was astounding, the number of people, especially women, who came out against the TMC, a party known for its women voter core. And they persisted for three long months. The fact that many felt justice was not carried out or obstructed by the government added fuel to the allegations of corruption and red tape. There already was disenchantment against the government for a long time, RG Kar lit the fuse. On 14 August 2024, the night before Independence Day, at least 50-60 lakh people were out on the streets, hand in hand, chanting against the government. That was the biggest proof of anti-incumbency one could ever see. It wasn't about her performance as the chief minister as much as against the corruption that runs within her party members.

The TMC has often been accused of doling out "freebies" to woo voters. How much impact do you think the government schemes like Lokkhir Bhandar, Shwastha Shathi, and Juba Shathi have? Despite criticism, over 18 lakh youth have signed up for the unemployment scheme—and influencers have been celebrating the increase in Lokkhir Bhandar.

It's hard to say how successful these doles are in terms of being election factors anymore. First, despite Lokkhir Bhandar and Shwastha Sathi, these women, including beneficiaries of the state, took to the streets during RG Kar, demanding action against the TMC government. For months, they left their jobs and demanded justice, even the overthrowing of the TMC government. They swore, "Never again". Second, it's true, Mamata Banerjee and the TMC have been trying to spread the message that if she goes, the doles go. But, honestly, I feel that people now know that no matter who comes to power, these schemes will not go.

Do you think the BJP would have made better electoral gains, had it relented on the SIR in Bengal?

Definitely. If it played decent, there was a massive anti-incumbency wave it could have ridden. But, instead, it chose to brand the entire population between 2002 and 2026 as suspect. It reveals a problem of attitude that makes one feel like a victim. At the same time, the CEC is obsessed with power. And his "loyalty" may end up costing the BJP more than just Bengal. But, for now, it seems it's the voter that has to pay the price.

Bengal Elections: 'Beyond SIR, Cards Stacked Against Mamata Banerjee'

"Mamata Banerjee is obviously worried because the BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] has targeted, through a computer, the constituencies she has won or winning, and slashed the winning margins with voter deletions," says former Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar on the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal.

In an exclusive interview with The Quint, Sircar, however, adds that the BJP has secured a "self-goal" in the state with the large number of deletions of Hindu voters—something the party hadn't expected.

In September 2024, Sircar had created a stir by resigning as the TMC MP over the alleged rape and murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

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Bengal Polls: ‘Cards Stacked Against Mamata but BJP Has Also Scored a Self-Goal’

Jawhar Sircar speaks on anti-incumbency against Mamata—and how the BJP scored a 'self-goal' in Bengal with the SIR.

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Topics: Mamata Banerjee Jawhar Sircar Special Intensive Revision