Daijiworld Media Network - Kolkata

Kolkata, Feb 2: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday launched a sharp attack on the current Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Gyanesh Kumar, describing him as the most “arrogant” and “untruthful” election official she has encountered in her long political career.

Speaking to reporters after a meeting lasting over an hour with the CEC at the Election Commission of India (ECI) headquarters in New Delhi, Banerjee said her decades in public life—as a seven-time Member of Parliament and a four-time Union Minister—had never exposed her to such conduct from a constitutional authority.

“I have never seen a Chief Election Commissioner like this. He is extremely arrogant and a great liar. I reminded him that no one remains in power forever; everyone has to leave their chair someday,” she said.

The Chief Minister alleged that West Bengal was being deliberately targeted through the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. She claimed the process was being carried out selectively and unfairly, with the state singled out for extraordinary scrutiny.

Banerjee particularly criticised the ECI’s Director General (Information Technology), Seema Khanna, accusing her of playing a central role in the deletion of genuine voters’ names from electoral rolls in the state. “She is nobody in the Election Commission. She is linked to the BJP’s IT cell. Already 58 lakh names have been deleted from the draft voters’ list, yet the ECI did not question her role,” Banerjee alleged.

She said the alleged arrogance of the CEC and the treatment meted out to the Trinamool Congress delegation forced her to boycott the meeting midway and walk out. According to Banerjee, the CEC’s behaviour from the outset was disrespectful and partisan.

Drawing comparisons, Banerjee said the CEC was behaving no differently from former West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, whom she has previously accused of acting at the BJP’s behest. “He is blindly following instructions of the ruling party,” she claimed.

The Chief Minister further argued that the alleged bias was evident from the appointment of special electoral roll observers and micro-observers exclusively for West Bengal to oversee the revision process. “In my entire political life, I have never seen a CEC who behaves like a parrot and an agent of the ruling party,” she said.

Questioning the urgency behind the exercise, Banerjee asked why the SIR was being conducted in a “hurried and selective” manner. She also raised pointed questions on transparency, asking why similar exercises were not being carried out in states like Assam and why restrictions were imposed on media coverage during the meeting.

“Can the CEC ask the Prime Minister to submit the birth certificates of his parents? Why were only the ECI’s cameramen present while others were not allowed?” she asked, alleging a lack of openness in the Commission’s functioning.