The Election Commission of India instructed the Chief Electoral Officer’s office in West Bengal to prevent booth-level agents or any political party representatives from interfering in the ongoing draft voters’ list hearings. This directive follows disruptions in Hooghly and Cooch Behar districts due to interventions by Trinamool Congress legislators during the Special Intensive Revision exercise.
Sources revealed that the legislators insisted on the presence of their party’s agents at the hearings, causing disruptions. The Commission also directed district authorities to take action against any similar attempts to disrupt or halt the hearing sessions in any district to maintain fairness and transparency.
The Commission emphasized the importance of eliminating political interventions to uphold fairness and transparency in the hearing process. Earlier, the Commission had rejected the Trinamool Congress’s demand to allow party agents at the hearings, citing concerns about accommodating multiple party representatives at each hearing table.
Allowing a large number of individuals at a single hearing table would hinder the effective conduct of the process, making it impractical to include party agents. This decision was made to ensure the smooth functioning of the hearings and avoid logistical challenges.
