The name of Richa Ghosh, a member of the World Cup-winning Indian women’s cricket team, has been marked as ‘under ad-judication’ in West Bengal’s final electoral rolls. This revelation surfaced after the state’s final voters’ list was released post the Special Intensive Revision exercise. The Election Commission of India categorized voters into three groups, including ‘deleted’ for exclusions, ‘approved’ for eligible voters, and ‘under ad-judication’ for 60,06,675 individuals whose documents are yet to be verified.
Richa Ghosh, residing in ward number 19 of Siliguri Municipality in north Bengal, was honored with the ‘Banga Bhushan’ award by the state government and appointed as a DSP in the state police. Despite these recognitions, her name remains in the ‘under adjudication’ category. Her father, Manabendra Ghosh, mentioned that Richa is often away from the state or country due to her cricket commitments, leading to a notice issued during the SIR process.
Notably, Richa’s sister, Somashree Ghosh, also falls under the same ‘under ad-judication’ category. Left Front leader Moushumi Hazra visited Richa’s residence upon learning of this development, expressing dismay over the situation faced by a national cricket star like Richa. Siliguri Mayor Goutam Deb criticized the Election Commission for this incident, emphasizing Richa’s significance as a pride of Siliguri and India.
A political controversy has emerged as the name of state minister and Harishchandrapur MLA Tajmul Hossian is also listed under ‘under ad-judication’. Hossain, who received the SIR notice on January 18, submitted all required documents promptly but remains surprised by the unresolved status of his name. Additionally, a Trinamool panchayat member, Jharna Mandal Barman, found her name omitted from the final voter’s list, sparking previous allegations of her Bangladeshi residency by the BJP.
