Bengal SIR: ‘AI used to delete 54 lakh names' – Mamata Banerjee's big claim, threatens to gherao EC office in Delhi

WEST Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday claimed that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) being conducted by the Election Commission of India was a huge "scam" being conducted with the help of artificial intelligence (AI).

The chief minister threatened that the Trinamool Congress will gherao the Election Commission's office in Delhi if the name of a single legitimate voter is deleted from the rolls.
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“Around 60 people have died due to SIR. Elderly people are being summoned for document verification hearings,” Banerjee said, addressing a rally in Bankura district. People of the state were being "tortured" in the name of SIR, the TMC chief added.

"If even a single legitimate voter's name is deleted, the TMC will gherao the office of the Election Commission in Delhi," she added.

"People will not allow the BJP to come to power in West Bengal," she said.

Banerjee alleged that the BJP has stationed its members at the EC's office in Delhi for the SIR exercise. "They have allegedly used AI to delete 54 lakh names, falsely attributing these actions to EROs. The ERO association has sent letters saying they did not carry out this work," she said.

"If someone's surname is Singh and it's written as Sinha in English, the name is removed. These are the absurdities people are facing. If your name has been removed, fill out forms 7 and 8. This is your right. Do not give up," she said.

TMC delegation to meet CEC tomorrow

A Trinamool Congress delegation will meet Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on December 31 to raise concerns about the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in West Bengal, the party said on Tuesday.

The delegation will be led by TMC leader in Lok Sabha Abhishek Banerjee and consist of MPs from both Houses of Parliament.

A delegation of TMC leaders had met the full bench of the Election Commission on November 28 over the SIR issue, alleging that several deaths took place amid the ongoing voter roll revision.

Hearings for ‘unmapped’ voters halted

If even a single legitimate voter's name is deleted, the TMC will gherao the office of the Election Commission in Delhi.

Earlier this month, the poll panel asked district election officials (DEOs) in West Bengal not to summon for hearings those voters identified as ‘unmapped.’ The pause applies only to voters flagged as not found by the EC’s central software but were found present on the hard copies of the 2002 rolls.

On 16 December, the Election Commission published West Bengal's draft electoral rolls following SIR, deleting the names of more than 58 lakh voters on various grounds, including death and migration, and redrawing voter profiles across districts and border belts ahead of the 2026 assembly polls.