Domicile certificates issued by the West Bengal government after July 2025 will undergo special scrutiny by the Election Commission of India during the upcoming hearing sessions on claims and objections regarding the draft voters’ list in West Bengal.
The Commission has instructed the Chief Electoral Officer’s office in West Bengal to verify the authenticity of these domicile certificates, especially for voters not linked to the 2002 voters’ list through self or progeny mapping.
The verification process will focus on two main aspects: determining the genuineness of the certificates and ensuring they have been rightfully issued to deserving residents of the state. Electoral registration officers and district electoral officers will conduct checks during the hearing sessions.
Micro-observers appointed by the Commission for the sessions will monitor the submission of domicile certificates as identity documents and report any discrepancies. This decision follows complaints from opposition parties about indiscriminate issuance of certificates without proper verification.
The opposition leader in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, has criticized the state administration for allegedly granting domicile certificates to illegal Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltrators. The hearing sessions will begin on Saturday, with a subsequent review of submitted documents, leading to the publication of the final voters’ list on February 14 next year.
