West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee met the Election Commission in Delhi on Monday. The meeting focused on the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. However, tensions rose quickly.

Soon after, Banerjee accused chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of insulting and humiliating her. As a result, she walked out of the meeting about an hour after it began.

Notably, she wore a black shawl to signal protest. She arrived with Trinamool Congress leaders Abhishek Banerjee and Kalyan Banerjee. Eight people whom the party claims were affected by SIR also joined the delegation.

Mamata Alleges Insult And Bias

After leaving Nirvachan Sadan, Banerjee spoke sharply to reporters.

“We boycotted the CEC and walked out. We were insulted, disrespected and humiliated. I have never seen this kind of CEC. He is very arrogant. He behaved so badly with us. We meet him to get justice. We never got justice. You are doing injustice. He is a great liar. All are garbage of lies,” she said.

Through these remarks, Banerjee made it clear that she saw the meeting as unfair and one-sided.

Mamata Targets CEC And BJP

Next, Banerjee accused the CEC of acting under political pressure. She compared his behaviour to that of former West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar.

“Today you are acting on BJP’s orders. Dhankhar also acted in the same way. He was the Governor of our state who always used to oppose us. We used to respect him. But there is a ‘Laxman Rekha’. Your fate would be the same as Dhankhar. You are not including voters in the electoral roll. You are deleting their names,” she said.

She then pointed to former chief election commissioners to underline her criticism.

“You can save your chair today. You won’t be able to save it tomorrow (in future). I have seen many CECs – SY Quraishi and TN Seshan. They were very strong. They never became a parrot for any political party,” she added.

Election Commission Pushes Back Strongly

Meanwhile, the Election Commission rejected Banerjee’s allegations. It said the rule of law would prevail at all times.

Furthermore, the commission warned against intimidation or interference in SIR work. It said it would take strict action if such incidents continued.

In addition, the EC raised serious concerns. It cited threats against election officials. It flagged vandalism at electoral registration officer offices. It also mentioned unauthorised transfers of electoral roll observers.

The EC also highlighted payment delays. It said authorities released only ₹7,000 of the approved ₹18,000 honorarium to booth-level officers.

EC Accuses TMC Of Pressure Tactics

In an official statement, the poll body directly blamed TMC leaders and workers.

“A TMC delegation led by Banerjee, met the commission and raised certain issues relating to the ongoing SIR in WB... TMC MLAs are openly using abusive and threatening language against the Commission and especially against the CEC. Also threatening the election officials. There have been incidents of vandalisation of the ERO offices by TMC workers and MLAs. No pressure, obstruction, or interference of any kind by anyone should be exerted on officers engaged in SIR work,” the EC said.

As a result, the commission signalled a tougher stance on any disruption.

Why SIR Triggered A Political Storm

The SIR process began in West Bengal in November last year. During the exercise, draft electoral rolls removed 5.82 million names. The deletion rate stood at 7.6 per cent. This figure was the lowest among states voting this summer.

Even so, Bengal saw the most protests. The ruling TMC strongly opposed the exercise. On the other hand, the BJP backed SIR and raised infiltration as a key election issue.

Mamata Steps Up Pressure

Meanwhile, Banerjee intensified her response. She wrote five letters to the CEC. She also held review meetings with district officials.

At the same time, she asked party workers to help affected voters file claims and objections. She warned that technical errors and procedural lapses could distort voter lists before elections. The Election Commission rejected these claims.

In addition, the TMC brought nearly 100 families to Delhi. These included families of booth-level officers and electors who allegedly died by suicide or cardiac arrest due to SIR stress. The party also cited cases where officials declared living voters dead. Eight such families joined the EC meeting.

Mamata Rules Out Election Boycott

Despite the confrontation, Banerjee ruled out any election boycott.

“We will never boycott the election. I will never commit this blunder. We will fight it out. They have taken over the government at least six months before the assembly elections. They are not allowing the government to work. They are behaving as if President’s Rule has been imposed in the state. Bengal is being targeted,” she said.

Through this statement, she signalled that the TMC will contest the polls aggressively.

BJP Moves Governor In Kolkata

Meanwhile, the BJP stepped in from Kolkata. A 14-member delegation led by Suvendu Adhikari met governor CV Ananda Bose. They submitted a memorandum against the state government.

“The TMC had resorted to hooliganism in the hearing centres. Under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee, a section of BLOs, EROs and AEROs deliberately made errors in the voters’ names and ages. Millions of people were called for hearing and harassed. We demand the suspension of the government officials and FIRs be lodged against them. We have specific information against three district election officers,” Adhikari said.