Union Home Minister Amit Shah raised concerns about the hurdles faced during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in West Bengal, prompting the Supreme Court to intervene. Shah highlighted that while the SIR was smoothly conducted in 14 states, it encountered obstacles only in West Bengal, leading to judicial intervention.
Shah criticized Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for allegedly influencing district magistrates, resulting in biased conduct during the SIR process. He also accused Banerjee of politicizing the Election Commission of India’s routine transfers of officials, emphasizing the need for impartiality in administrative decisions.
Furthermore, Shah suggested that Banerjee’s resistance to the SIR was driven by a desire to protect illegal infiltrators on the voters’ list to secure her party’s rule. He asserted that such tactics would not succeed in the upcoming elections, dismissing Banerjee’s alleged victimization strategies.
In response to Banerjee’s claims of Bengalis being endangered, Shah clarified that identifying and deporting illegal infiltrators, not Bengali-speaking Indians, was the government’s priority. He emphasized the distinction between Bangladeshi infiltrators and legitimate Bengali residents, aiming to allay concerns about the safety of Bengalis in India.
