Kolkata, Sept. 25 -- A demonstration by the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) over the SIR of electoral rolls and the deletion of voters' names turned tense in Kolkata on Friday, with police stopping the march to the Chief Electoral Officer's office.
The rally began from Dharmatala, with AIDWA activists carrying flags and banners and demanding restoration of names allegedly deleted from the electoral rolls. The march was first stopped near Ganesh Chandra Avenue and was later barricaded at B B Ganguly Street.
When protesters attempted to cross the barricades, CPIM Central Committee member Minakshi Mukherjee, Koninika Ghosh Bose and other Left women leaders sat on the road and began a sit-in. Police were deployed in the area to control the situation.
Addressing the gathering, Mukherjee alleged that the SIR process had resulted in the deletion of names of eligible voters for "unusual" reasons and demanded that their names be restored.
"People will not run from office to office to get their names restored while those responsible for the situation remain unaccountable," she said.
She also demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and an inquiry into the role of former West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal. Mukherjee alleged that complaints had repeatedly been submitted to the CEO's office but remained unresolved.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.