Show cause notices issued to nearly 1,000 West Bengal BLOs unwilling to participate in electoral process

The Office of the West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer has issued show cause notice to nearly 1,000 Booth-Level Officers (BLOs) for alleged non-compliance with election-related directives under the Representation of the People Act, 1950.

They have allegedly failed to register their names as BLOs on a designated portal despite repeated requests from the Electoral Registration Officer concerned. The BLOs have also been directed to reply within 72 hours of receiving their notice.

The development assumes significance as preparations for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll are due in the State. In the case of ‘mapping’, the voter list published in 2002 is being compared with the latest published voter list, sources in the Election Commission of India (ECI) said.

On Wednesday (October 22, 2025), the ECI held a meeting with the Chief Electoral Officers of all the States and Union Territories in Delhi. West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal was among those who participated in the meeting.

The BLOs who have refused to participate in the electoral process have cited security reasons.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has raised objections. The Chief Electoral Officer’s office had no authority to issue such notices because the ECI’s authority only came into the picture after the model code of conduct was in place, the TMC leadership said.

The BLOs were scared because of the ruling party’s “intimidation politics”, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership alleged.

The State BJP leadership has directed the party’s rank and file to ensure that the impending SIR is a success. In a virtual meeting, West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya told party leaders that if they did not work tirelessly to ensure a successful SIR, air-conditioned rooms and beautiful party offices would no longer exist in the future.

The ECI is planning to add nearly 14,000 new polling booths amidst the SIR in West Bengal, and the BJP faces a shortage of Booth Level Agents (BLAs). There are approximately 80,000 polling booths in the State.

While BJP leaders claimed there would be no Assembly election in the State if the SIR was not carried out properly, the TMC has warned of massive protests if the names of legitimate voters were struck off from the State’s voter list.

The next West Bengal Assembly election is due in 2026.