SIR fear needs to be allayed, CM’s claim must be examined: West Bengal Governor

“In these situations, it is better to avoid knee-jerk reactions. What the chief minister has pointed out has to be examined in detail and in depth,” Bose told reporters at Raj Bhavan on the sidelines of an event to mark three years in office.

The Election Commission possesses a “balanced outlook”, and “all these issues can be examined properly and appropriate solutions found”, the Governor said.

He also called for meetings between the Election Commission and the state government to address public fears surrounding the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls. “There are various fears among people about SIR. Incidents like suicide have happened. In this context, the Election Commission and the state government should meet more to allay people’s fears about SIR,” he said, adding that he would do “everything required to bridge this”.

The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) claimed that over 30 people, including BLOs, have died during the ongoing SIR exercise, which began on November 4, and demanded that the ECI take responsibility for these deaths. The chief minister had on November 19 claimed that a booth-level officer, Shanti Muni Ekka, in Jalpaiguri’s Mal area, took her own life under the “unbearable pressure of the ongoing SIR work”.

Earlier, the Governor had backed the SIR exercise and said it was necessary to clean up the election process, adding, “Bihar has proved it.” The Governor made the remarks after the BJP-led NDA’s sweep in the Bihar Assembly polls, where SIR was conducted just ahead of the elections.

Meanwhile, reflecting on his three-year tenure as the Governor of West Bengal, an emotional Bose said: “As I am entering my fourth year as Governor, it gives me a lot of satisfaction and self-fulfilment that I have come to this blessed land where I love the people and get love… In the coming two years, I will be spending more time with people in the villages. Raj Bhavan’s gates will be open for the people. My experience in the state has been extremely good. There have been ups and downs in the relationship with the political executive, but it is what I consider a part of democracy.”

Bose and the TMC government in the state have been at loggerheads over multiple issues, including delays in signing Bills and the Governor’s alleged “over-activeness” in holding the ruling party responsible for political unrest.

“I am committed to working for everyone in society, small or great. Today, I recommit to my work,” he added as a series of programmes were organised at the Raj Bhavan to mark the occasion.

The Governor participated in a yoga session with children on the Raj Bhavan grounds early in the morning.

School uniforms were also distributed to students of Raj Bhavan Free Primary School.

— WITH PTI Inputs